Hunting 81: Gathering Goods in the Mountains, I Spoil My Ex-Wife to the Extreme

Following the direction Li Yunshan pointed, Gao Hongmei also saw the herd of red deer grazing on the grass in the snow.

However, after visually estimating the distance between the two sides, she said, "We're at least a mile away from that herd of deer. Should we sneak up quietly and shoot them when we get close?"

"If we don't go over and get closer, are we supposed to shoot those deer here?" Li Yunshan rolled his eyes.

According to his estimation, the herd of deer was at least a mile away from them. At such a distance, let alone the Tiger Head brand hunting rifle that Gao Hongmei was holding, even his Mosin-Nagant rifle only had an effective range of eight or nine hundred meters. The bullets would have lost all their kinetic energy halfway through the flight, and they wouldn't even be able to reach the deer's rear ends.

If we fired at this distance, the gunshot would only scare the deer away.

Only by getting close to the herd of deer and firing within effective firing range can you hit them.

Of course, the closer you are to the herd of deer, the higher your chances of successfully hitting them when hunting them with a gun.

"Then let's hurry over there."

Gao Hongmei was already eager to try.

If you can't catch a tiger, you can at least hunt a deer.

Li Yunshan had previously killed a tiger, and the tiger skin alone sold for several thousand yuan. Although a deer is not as valuable as a tiger, Li Yunshan had also killed a deer before, and it is said that he sold it for several hundred yuan.

If I could hunt a deer, I could earn a few hundred yuan, and then I could pay off the debt I owed Li Yunshan and stop owing him favors.

Although Gao Hongmei knew that Li Yunshan lent her the money because he felt indebted to her in the past, Gao Hongmei never felt that she could refrain from repaying the debt just because Li Yunshan felt indebted to her.

After all, she and Li Yunshan were divorced. Li Yunshan lent her the money out of consideration for their past relationship as husband and wife, so that she could take her father to the county hospital for fracture surgery.

Who would lend out a large sum of money after a divorce, still clinging to past relationships?

Not lending is the norm.

Since someone lent her the money, she felt guilty for keeping it to herself.

Repaying debts is justified.

"You'll stay behind me and follow my instructions. Your hunting rifle has a short range, so we'll try to get as close to the herd of deer as possible. If the deer spot us and the range is too far, I'll fire. You'll just need to find your opportunity and fire when it's your turn."

Li Yunshan gave Gao Hongmei some instructions.

Gao Hongmei nodded, indicating that she understood.

Immediately afterwards, the two men quietly carried their guns, bent over, and crept towards the herd of deer that were grazing on the grass in the snow.

Because they were quite far from the herd of deer, they sneaked over there quietly, which took them quite some time.

The main reason was that the herd of red deer, perhaps because they had been chased by the striped tiger earlier, did not lose much of their vigilance, even though one of their companions had already been sacrificed to the tiger and become its meal.

They were indeed nibbling on the grass stems in the snow, but after taking a few bites, the lead male sika deer would raise its head and look around, and the other sika deer would also occasionally raise their heads to observe the surrounding movements.

Therefore, when Li Yunshan and Gao Hongmei quietly approached the herd of deer, they had to be extra careful. They had to stop from time to time, and only when the deer looked up and looked around and then lowered their heads to nibble on the grass stems would they slowly move closer to the herd.

And so they walked and stopped, peeking out to observe, then walked and stopped again, peeking out to observe once more.

After walking for about half an hour, Li Yunshan and Gao Hongmei finally reached a place less than two hundred meters away from the herd of deer.

However, after reaching this distance, Li Yunshan dared not make any further rash moves.

Because it is now the dead of winter, the mountains and forests are open and exposed, without any bushes or weeds to block the view. If we were to make any rash moves and approach the herd of deer, we might startle them and cause them to flee, which would be a greater loss than a gain.

Therefore, Li Yunshan would only continue to approach the herd of deer if everything was absolutely certain.

He peeked out cautiously, glanced at her, and then withdrew. Looking at Gao Hongmei beside him, whose pretty face was red from the cold, he lowered his voice and said, "Don't move around or make a sound. Even if you need to fart, you have to hold it in."

"When we find the right opportunity, we'll try to get a little closer to those deer."

"understood."

Gao Hongmei responded softly.

Li Yunshan then chambered the bullet. He didn't aim at the deer, but held the gun steadily with the butt against his shoulder.

He was waiting for an opportunity, a chance to get a little closer to the herd of deer.

The closer you get to the red deer, the higher your chances of a successful hunt.

Gao Hongmei held her breath beside Li Yunshan, her big eyes fixed on the herd of deer in the distance.

Unfortunately, Li Yunshan and Gao Hongmei lay there for nearly twenty minutes without getting a chance to approach the herd of deer. Every now and then, a few deer would raise their heads while munching on grass and look around. It was like one deer after another taking turns looking around. The herd of deer remained highly vigilant, allowing the others a chance to catch their breath, munch on grass, and replenish their food supplies by having a few deer constantly look up and observe their surroundings.

"Li Yunshan, why aren't you sneaking over there yet?"

After waiting for nearly twenty minutes, Gao Hongmei was also getting a little impatient.

The main problem is that the weather is cold right now. Even though I'm wearing winter cotton-padded trousers and a cotton-padded coat, lying like this for a long time without moving around will make my hands and feet stiff and cold.

"Those red deer were very vigilant. Several red deer took turns keeping watch, so we didn't have a chance to sneak over at all."

Li Yunshan explained.

"What should we do then? Are we just going to lie here like this? Doesn't your gun have a long range? Why don't you aim and fire a shot? Just aim at that biggest male sika deer, maybe you can kill it with one shot."

Gao Hongmei said in a low voice.

"You make it sound so easy. I estimate it's over 200 meters from here to that male deer. Although I'm fairly confident I can hit it, the distance is so great that I can't guarantee I can kill it with one shot. Let's wait and see if we can get closer. If we get within 50 meters, my chances of killing the deer with one shot will increase by 30%."

"Okay, then wait another half hour. If it doesn't work, you'll have to fire a shot to test it."

"It's so cold today. After lying in the snow for so long, my hands and feet started to get cold."

"OK."

So the two of them lay there in the snow, not daring to move, their eyes fixed on the herd of deer, waiting for an opportunity to get closer.

However, it seems that fate is not on their side. Li Yunshan and Gao Hongmei lay in the snow for nearly twenty minutes, but they still couldn't find a chance to get close to the herd of deer.

"How come these red deer are so vigilant? Even after so much time has passed, several red deer are still taking turns to keep watch."

After waiting for so long, Li Yunshan couldn't help but curse under his breath.

It wasn't that he was impatient or irritable, but rather that the deer's behavior was completely out of character for them.

Could it be that they were truly terrified after being chased by that magnificent tiger? That's why this herd of deer has maintained such a high level of vigilance, with several deer taking turns keeping watch even when they're eating.

"Damn it, do you really have to force me to fire from this distance?"

Li Yunshan gritted his teeth, held the gun, and aimed the cold muzzle at the lead male deer, locking it firmly in place through the scope.

Just as Li Yunshan was quietly eyeing the leading male deer, the herd of deer, perhaps having eaten their fill or having devoured all the grass stalks in that patch of snow, finally moved.

Led by a male elk, followed by a dozen or so others, they approached the hiding place of Li Yunshan and Gao Hongmei. This made Li Yunshan, who was about to fire his gun, quickly suppress the urge to pull the trigger.

"Those deer finally moved and walked this way."

Gao Hongmei lowered her voice and couldn't help but mutter something under her breath.

"See where they stop, estimate the distance, and then we'll shoot."

Li Yunshan said.

At this moment, the herd of red deer, which had just been chased by the striped tiger, was completely unaware that about two hundred meters away, two pairs of hunters were watching them intently.

The herd of deer trotted up a gentle slope and quickly came within a hundred meters of Li Yunshan and Gao Hongmei.

With a distance of less than 100 meters and in such an unobstructed terrain, Li Yunshan was already 80% confident that he could kill the leading male deer.

However, in order to take care of Gao Hongmei, Li Yunshan suppressed the urge to pull the trigger and kill the male deer.

He knew that Gao Hongmei kept pestering him to go hunting in the mountains so that she could catch some prey as soon as possible, sell it, and pay back the money she owed him.

He planned to let Gao Hongmei shoot the male deer when it was closer.

According to his estimate, the meat from that male red deer could sell for at least five or six hundred yuan. Adding the deer hide, antlers, and other items, the money earned would be enough for Gao Hongmei to pay him back, with some left over.

"Wait a minute, wait until the biggest buck gets close, then you can shoot it."

Li Yunshan whispered to Gao Hongmei.

"Okay, no problem."

Gao Hongmei nodded, feeling a little nervous.

In her opinion, that male deer weighed at least 400 pounds, making it a very large prey.

This was the first time she was about to hunt such a large prey.

Just thinking about it made Gao Hongmei nervous.

Because of her nervousness, she also tried to calm herself down by taking deep breaths.

At the same time, she had already raised her hunting rifle and aimed the muzzle at the lead male deer.

As soon as the male sika deer entered within fifty meters of them, Li Yunshan gave the order to fire.

"beat!"

Beside her, Gao Hongmei aimed at the male red deer and decisively pulled the trigger of the Tiger Head brand hunting rifle with her index finger.

"Bang!"

The deafening gunshot, like a thunderclap in a clear sky, rang out in the silent mountain forest covered with a layer of white snow.

The bullet entered the deer's foreleg, instantly blooming into a flower of blood. The deer fell to the ground with a thud, letting out a few "yoyo" cries.