The Entire Mountain Is My Hunting Ground

In truth, the first instinct of most wild boars and black bears when surrounded by dogs is to run.

This holds true even though they are much larger than dogs and far more powerful in a one-on-one fight.

The Black Bear initially faced off with the dogs for a few seconds. Its fierce posture kept the two dogs from advancing, but then it feinted and spun around to run.

The moment it ran, Hua Xiao’Er and Daqing gave chase relentlessly.

Just moments before, Zhao Jun had stopped Li Baoyu from feeding them meat. The two dogs had licked their chops and eaten until they were about half-full, but they were still hungry.

One bear and two dogs raced across the slope, kicking up snow that billowed like dust.

Daqing quickly caught up and was running alongside the Black Bear. The bear glanced sideways, then made a sharp turn, its body sending a shower of snow into the air.

The dog Daqing leaped up and snapped its jaws at the Black Bear. The great bear swiped out with a paw, striking Daqing.

Daqing was slapped to the snowy ground but rolled over and scrambled back to its feet. However, a splash of red now stained the spot where it had fallen.

Having knocked Daqing down with a single swat, the Black Bear didn’t pause, turning its head to continue running.

Just then, Hua Xiao’Er arrived and, seeing its chance, bit the Black Bear right on the rump.

The Black Bear stopped and swiped a paw back at it.

Hua Xiao’Er quickly let go and dodged back. Seeing the bear was about to run again, Hua Xiao’Er lunged forward for another bite.

The Black Bear had only taken two steps before it was forced to stop again and swipe back with its paw.

Hua Xiao’Er let go and dodged again. When the Black Bear tried to leave, the dog pounced and bit it once more.

This time, the Black Bear had had enough. It turned and charged at Hua Xiao’Er.

As the bear charged, it was Hua Xiao’Er’s turn to run. It turned and fled back the way they came, intending to lure the Black Bear back.

The Black Bear gave chase for two or three meters, but the dog was much faster. It gave up the pursuit and turned to leave again.

But as it turned, Daqing blocked its path. A palm-sized flap of skin had been torn open on Daqing’s back, and fresh blood was streaming down its two front legs onto the snow.

The Black Bear lunged and swiped, but Daqing had learned its lesson this time and dodged to the side. As the Black Bear tried to run past, both Daqing and Hua Xiao’Er attacked it.

The Black Bear fought as it fled, but the two dogs harassed it relentlessly. Ten minutes passed, and the bear had only managed to cover about two hundred meters.

This was the essence of hunting with a dog pack.

In those days, life wasn’t easy for the mountain folk. Not many families could even afford to keep two dogs. Households that could raise four or five—a so-called Dog Gang—were few and far between in the surrounding villages.

In truth, surrounding a wild boar was one thing, but cornering a Black Bear was another. Its paws were devastating to dogs. If you sent dogs in for a direct fight, even twenty of them wouldn’t be enough to take down this particular Black Bear.

In an era without gun control, the key to a successful hunt was the gun. The dogs were used to pin down the prey and keep it from getting away until the Hunter arrived to finish it with a shot.

Although Daqing wasn’t the best at finding the trail, it was very smart. It knew it couldn’t fight head-on, so it started mimicking Hua Xiao’Er’s hit-and-run tactics.

At that moment, Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu were making their way up the slope. They saw that within a hundred meters ahead, the snow had been completely trampled flat by one bear and two dogs.

"Baoyu, be careful."

"Okay," Li Baoyu replied.

Zhao Jun ran forward a couple of steps, raised his rifle, and aimed at the Black Bear running down the slope. Seeing the bear’s loping gait, Zhao Jun led his target and immediately pulled the trigger.

There was a loud "BANG!"

The shot entered the Black Bear’s right side. The bear staggered, then twisted around and charged toward the source of the sound.

It was charging straight for Zhao Jun!

Zhao Jun stood his ground and fired two more shots in quick succession.

The first shot hit the top of the Black Bear’s shoulder, making it stumble and fall to the left. The second shot struck it squarely in the head, penetrating its brain. The Black Bear collapsed to the ground with a thud.

The two dogs immediately pounced, viciously tearing at the Black Bear’s body.

Zhao Jun walked closer, rifle at the ready. He didn’t fire a finishing shot because Daqing was tearing at the bear’s ear.

If he fired again now, he might not hit Daqing, but the muzzle blast could easily deafen it.

"Brother!" Li Baoyu trotted over, grabbing Zhao Jun’s arm. "You have to teach me how to shoot tomorrow."

"That’s easy enough," Zhao Jun said, jutting his chin toward the bear. He told Li Baoyu, "Stab it again. Make sure it’s completely dead."

Li Baoyu stepped forward and stabbed the Black Bear in the neck with his Invasion Blade. He stabbed it five times in a row. Once they were sure the bear was dead, the two of them worked together to flip it over, and Li Baoyu began to gut it with the Invasion Blade.

"Wow, look at this gall bladder!"

Suddenly, Li Baoyu cried out in surprise. Zhao Jun leaned over to look and saw Li Baoyu holding a Bear Gall he had just removed from the bear’s abdomen.

The Bear Gall wasn’t particularly large, but it had the color of brass.

A Copper Gall!

’At least eight hundred yuan!’

Zhao Jun took a cloth pouch from his pocket, placed the Bear Gall inside, and tucked it away. Then he said to Li Baoyu, "Same as always. We split this gall bladder, half for each of our families."

"I won’t get my hands on any of my half," Li Baoyu grumbled as he carved meat from the Black Bear’s belly to feed the dogs.

"As if I’ll get to touch mine," Zhao Jun added. Just like Wang Meilan, Jin Xiaomei held the family’s finances in an iron grip.

The money from the previous Black Bear and the Lynx Fur, which Zhao Youcai had taken down the mountain to sell, had been given to Wang Meilan as soon as he got home. Wang Meilan then took the money next door to the Li Family and counted out half for Jin Xiaomei.

Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu hadn’t seen a single cent of that money, let alone spent any. Both Wang Meilan and Jin Xiaomei gave them the same reason: "Mom is saving it for you, to use when you get married."

Li Baoyu was busy cutting meat for the dogs, then he removed the Bear Nose, the kneecaps, and the Bear’s Paws.

Meanwhile, Zhao Jun untied his leg wrappings and used them to bandage the wound on Daqing’s shoulder. Then he gathered some dry branches, started a fire, and toasted the rations Hu Erya had packed for them that morning.

Just then, Li Baoyu finished his work. He grabbed a couple handfuls of snow and scrubbed his hands, removing the grease and blood.

Then he walked over, took a corn flatbread from Zhao Jun, and said after a bite, "I’ve gotta say, Second Sister Hu makes some pretty good flatbread."

Zhao Jun picked up a piece of pickled radish that had been warming by the fire and took a bite. After chewing and swallowing the flatbread in his mouth, he said to Li Baoyu, "Yeah, the Hu Family’s griddled cakes and flatbreads are top-notch."

"I wonder if Second Sister’s husband and Li San’Er are home yet." Li Baoyu also took a bite of pickled radish. He was truly worrying about things that were none of his business.

Hearing this, Zhao Jun couldn’t help but laugh out loud. He struggled to swallow the flatbread and pickle in his mouth, afraid he’d spit it all out if he couldn’t control his laughter.

Then, Zhao Jun said with a grin, "Those two? It’d be a miracle if they didn’t get an earful when they get back."

"Why’s that?" Li Baoyu asked curiously.

Zhao Jun said, "Second Sister’s husband’s injury is less serious than Li San’s, but it still won’t heal until after the New Year. He’s missing over a month of work at the Forest Farm. How much money is that down the drain?"

Li Baoyu took a bite of flatbread and asked, puzzled, "But won’t the money from selling the Bear Gall make up for it?" 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Zhao Jun shook his head. "That Bear Gall will be lucky to fetch one hundred yuan. And when he gets the money, he’ll probably have to ’support’ Second Sister’s family with some of it. How much will he have left in the end?"

Li Baoyu nodded, only half-understanding. He said with some feeling, "Brother, I gotta say, those two are real characters."

"Hahaha..." Zhao Jun laughed heartily. "They’re more than just ’real characters’."

Li Baoyu also roared with laughter, bending back and forth. Trying to catch a bear with their bare hands—what were those two thinking?

Just then, Zhao Jun’s smile vanished. He said to Li Baoyu, "Brother, when spring comes, we’re coming back here."

"To do what?"

"To go hunting with those two again."