My Gold Rush Career Begins in 1984

Chapter 50 The Beaver That Killed Itself
Zhou Jingming pondered for a moment, then remembered something and laughed: "If I'm not mistaken, it should be a beaver!"

"beaver?"

Wu Yang shook his head: "Never heard of it. What kind of?"

"This... looks like a giant rat, with a long, flat tail. You'll see when you get there."

This thing likes to gnaw on trees. It can gnaw through a birch tree the size of a bowl in two hours, then drag it into the water to form a dam.

Most of the daytime they live in their burrows in the water and only come out at night to find food, which is tree bark and leaves. They also need to constantly gnaw on their teeth like squirrels. They are more common in northern Xinjiang, around the Ulungur River and the Burgen River. They can be found in other places, but they are relatively rare.

So, you take the gun and walk around to the riverbank to prevent it from escaping into the water. Once you're in position, I'll go over there and chase after it.

Don't worry, beavers aren't fast on slopes and aren't very wary, so they're easy to catch.

Don't let its size fool you; it's over a meter long and weighs thirty or forty pounds. With a stick in its hand, it only takes two blows to catch up with it.

Zhou Jingming briefly explained the situation, then thought for a moment and instructed, "Take a closer look. It might be a whole nest. You might see a few around here. If there are more, you can kill them all and get a lot of meat."

Also, the leather is good quality; when you're hitting, try to aim for the head, not the body.

"Row!"

Wu Yang nodded. Seeing that Zhou Jingming had nothing more to say, he picked up his hunting rifle and strode towards the riverbank below.

Zhou Jingming didn't just wait foolishly. He picked up his axe and, following Jin Wang, carefully approached the birch trees.

When he was about thirty meters away from the birch trees, he saw the gray-furred creature among the birch trees, which was the beaver he had guessed.

At that moment, the beaver was resting its front paws on a birch tree about the size of a bowl, tilting its head and crunching away at the trunk.

The area it gnawed on had been chewed deep all around, and the part where the trunk was connected was very thin, like two pointed spinning tops facing each other.

Zhou Jingming felt that if the wind were even slightly strong, the birch tree would immediately collapse.

Wu Yang had reached the riverbank under the birch trees. He quietly glanced at the beavers who were still engrossed in gnawing on the birch trunks for a while, then retreated to the riverbank and began to look around the riverbank to see if there were any other beavers.

Just then, a piercing creaking sound suddenly rang out, causing Zhou Jingming to immediately turn his gaze away from Chao Wuyang and look at the beaver.

The birch tree that had been gnawed by the beavers didn't get a chance to sway in the mountain wind. Instead, the base of the tree, which was already too thin to support the weight of the birch itself, suddenly broke and fell down the slope towards the riverbank.

Hearing the crash of the birch tree falling, Wu Yang was startled and turned around to look.

The beaver that had been engrossed in gnawing on the wood suddenly realized something was wrong. It hunched over and took small, quick steps, running away to the side.

What happened next surprised even Zhou Jingming.

The birch tree crashed down with a whoosh, breaking many branches of two other birch trees nearby. As the birch tree hit the ground, its trunk at the base bounced high into the air. When it fell again, its position shifted, and it landed squarely on the beaver that was running away.

Zhou Jingming had only heard stories of such coincidences in his previous life—being hit by a tree he had gnawed down—but he never expected to witness it with his own eyes in this life.

Seeing the beaver pinned under a fallen tree trunk and unable to move, Zhou Jingming happily ran towards it.

Jin Wang immediately rushed towards the beaver that was making squeaking noises.

After all, they were only half-grown puppies. Although they were already able to guard the house, they really had no hunting experience.

So when it rushed to the beaver, it just turned around, pressed down on its front legs, and barked at the beaver, not daring to bite it immediately.

When Zhou Jingming got closer, he saw that a lot of blood was coming out of the beaver's mouth, and its four short legs were kicking, but after struggling for a few moments, it gradually became still.

Judging from the appearance, it was hit in the waist and abdomen by the tree trunk, which injured its internal organs and caused its death.

Zhou Jingming poked the beaver's head with the handle of his axe to see if it was still alive, to avoid being bitten if he reached out to grab it. Don't be fooled by its plump appearance and seemingly stupid look; its pair of gleaming yellow teeth are formidable, capable of gnawing on trees with ease. If it were to bite you, your bones would shatter.

Seeing Zhou Jingming poke at the beaver with the axe handle, Jin Wang immediately rushed over, sniffed at the beaver, and opened his mouth to bite down on the beaver's head. He bent over and tried his best to pull it back, but he was pressed down by the birch trunk and could not be dragged out.

Even when Jinwang was biting and dragging it, it didn't move, so it was completely certain that the beaver was dead.

To prevent Jinwang from tearing the beaver's fur, Zhou Jingming quickly reached out and pushed Jinwang aside: "Jinwang, let go... let go..."

He shouted several times, his voice grew louder, and he pushed Jin Wang harder, but Jin Wang refused to let go.

It wasn't until Zhou Jingming raised his hand as if to hit it that it released its mouth, was pushed aside, tilted its head to look at the beaver, and stuck out its tongue to lick the bloodstains on its lips.

Seemingly stimulated by the smell of blood, it tried to bite again, but was pushed away by Zhou Jingming, and whimpered in distress.

Wu Yang also rushed up from the riverbank at this moment. When he saw the scene, he immediately understood what had happened: "He just died like that?"

Zhou Jingming laughed: "It's because God knows how hard we've worked these past few days, so He specially sent us some meat to replenish our strength."

This beaver is quite large. After removing its fur and entrails, the remaining meat is enough for us to have a good meal for two.

Wu Yang scrutinized the beaver, especially intrigued by its flat tail. He pulled on it and examined it closely, even pulling out its webbed hind legs to stretch them out for a closer look. "This thing is really bizarre," he said. "Its tail is like a paddle, and its feet are like a goose's. It must be a great swimmer... Brother Zhou, have you ever eaten a beaver? Is the meat delicious?"

Zhou Jingming nodded: "I've tried it once, it was pretty good!"

In his past life, he had eaten once at a restaurant run by people from Yuzhou in Qinggeli. In his memory, he had eaten there when he was out prospecting for mines with Boss Jin and passed through Qinggeli.

While eating, I didn't know what it was. Only after I finished did I hear from Boss Jin that it was an extremely rare beaver in Altay, with a special protected area. Ordinary people can't eat it, and they don't dare to.

But what era are we living in? Who has the time to care about all that nonsense, especially in an era where guns and hunting are not prohibited? It's good enough if you can just live your life well.

As for what beavers actually taste like, Zhou Jingming couldn't remember. What he remembered most vividly was that Boss Jin had said that the beaver's flat tail covered with keratinous scales was a rare delicacy.

I also overheard the restaurant owner and Mr. Jin selling beaver pelts, saying they were high-quality goods. A single beaver pelt could be exchanged for a fine horse in Altay, and if it were made into a complete fur coat, it would be even more valuable.

This beaver, besides being a source of meat, should also be worth some money for its fur. But looking at the beaver's wet fur, Zhou Jingming thought that keeping it would make a great hat, which he happened to know how to make himself.

He struggled to lift the birch trunk a little, and Wu Yang took the opportunity to drag the beaver out, lifting it with one hand and weighing it: "Wow, it's not light, probably fifty or sixty pounds. We'll have plenty to eat this time."

At this moment, probably no one is more eager to eat meat than Zhou Jingming and Wu Yang.

The physically demanding work, coupled with the training in combat skills, requires more energy than others, making meat an extremely sought-after commodity.

Zhou Jingming looked around and went down to the riverbank. On the muddy beach, he could see the footprints left by beavers. He walked down for a while and saw a small ditch hidden among the withered grass, which the beavers had dug out.

The ditch connects to the river, and under a large clump of willow branches, there is a pile of tree branches, which is known to be the beaver's den.

What these things love to do most is to use branches, stones, and the like to build dams across rivers. If there are enough of them, they can even build dams that are hundreds of meters long.

Judging from the pile of branches, it's still quite fresh and not very big, so this beaver probably hasn't been here long.

Zhou Jingming found a stick and poked at the pile of branches, but no other beavers appeared. He guessed that there was only this one beaver here.

He immediately turned back: "Let's go, hurry back. They should all be up by now, and the food should be almost ready. Don't delay our business!"

Wu Yang hoisted the beaver onto his shoulder and followed Zhou Jingming back. They had only gone a few steps when Jin Wang, who was running ahead, suddenly stopped and began barking wildly at the woods diagonally above.

　Thank you to readers Hei A Niu Ge and Shen Huang Shen Yin for the generous donations!

　　Please add my new book to your favorites, read it, and leave a comment!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)