Chapter 77 Setting Traps to Catch Wild Boars

"This is beautiful, here you go." Xiao Qidi took out a freshly picked flower.

The unnamed flower was bright red and glistening with dew.

Ning Jinli asked incredulously, "You climbed up there just to pick this flower?"

"Do you like it?" Xiao Qidi asked with a faint smile in his eyes.

Ning Jinli sighed, "You're really crazy..."

However, this flower is indeed very beautiful, with a refreshing and pleasant fragrance.

Since Xiao Qidi had picked them especially for her, Ning Jinli felt embarrassed to refuse. "Thank you, they're very pretty, I like them, but... sigh, I don't know what to say to you."

Xiao Qidi said quietly, "You had a dream last night, saying you wanted pretty flowers."

Ning Jinli paused for two seconds, then blinked her big eyes, "Now that you mention it, I think I remember."

The images from last night's dream resurfaced in my mind.

She dreamed that she had returned to her childhood, and her parents were taking her shopping, passing by a flower shop.

The flower shop was filled with all kinds of blooming flowers, which made her unable to take her eyes off them, so she told her parents that she wanted some.

It turns out he was dreaming while asleep and said what he was saying in his dream.

"So... you went to pick flowers for me specifically because you heard me talking in my sleep?" Ning Jinli looked at Xiao Qidi in disbelief.

Xiao Qidi nodded.

Ning Jinli suddenly felt a lump in her throat. "You idiot, what if you get hurt again?"

“I know what I’m doing, you don’t need to worry,” Xiao Qidi said with a relaxed expression. “I caught some fish and gathered a lot of branches this morning, so I can’t let you do all the work.”

He then added, "I also explored the area. The cliffs here are as if cut by a knife and axe, and the surrounding area is full of jungle. There is almost no way to go, and it will not be easy to leave."

Ning Jinli held the flowers under her nose, smelling them gently as she said, "At least we've survived. Let's conserve our energy first, and then slowly find a way out."

Xiao Qidi looked around and said, “If it weren’t for the fact that it’s located at the bottom of a deep mountain ravine, often shrouded in thick fog and lacking sunlight, making it quite cold and gloomy, it would be a secluded place far from the world.”

Ning Jinli laughed and said, "Oh, I didn't realize you were so young to have such thoughts. What, don't you want to be a king anymore? Don't you want to unify the six kingdoms?"

Xiao Qidi said casually, "It was just a casual remark."

Just then, a rich, smoky aroma of caramelized fish wafted over.

Ning Jinli's eyes lit up. "Your grilled fish is ready to eat. Quick, let's go into the cave."

The two immediately turned back, sat cross-legged by the fire, and began to enjoy the succulent fish.

Although there are no seasonings, the fish in this river have more fat than ordinary freshwater fish because of the cold environment. When you bite into one, it sizzles with oil, filling your mouth with freshness and flavor, without any fishy smell.

"Mmm...it's so delicious! No wonder it's a wild carp that's all-natural and pollution-free." Ning Jinli said while enjoying her meal. "If this were my time, fish like this would be a rare find, and I don't know how popular it would be. I could make a fortune just by selling fish, hehe."

At this point, Ning Jinli's smile suddenly froze, and then her expression became serious.

"Miss Ning, what's wrong?" Xiao Qidi asked softly.

“Sigh…” Ning Jinli sighed, “I’ve been out of contact for so long, Aunt Su must be worried sick.”

She then said firmly, "No matter what, we have to leave here."

A complex expression flashed in Xiao Qidi's eyes, and he nodded slightly.

"Alright, I'm full." Ning Jinli stood up. "Let's get to work!"

"Work?" Xiao Qidi asked, puzzled. "What kind of work?"

Ning Jinli said with high spirits, "Of course it's preparation for leaving here. We can't really be trapped here forever, can we?"

Xiao Qidi muttered to himself, "It's not entirely impossible."

"What are you muttering about?" Ning Jinli asked.

“It’s nothing,” Xiao Qidi slowly stood up, “Then… let’s begin.”

Xiao Qidi himself didn't have much experience in wilderness survival, so he had to listen to Ning Jinli in everything.

Ning Jinli, on the other hand, tried to imitate the various wilderness survival videos she had seen online before.

She told Xiao Qidi about the general plan.

First, gather materials to make something to keep warm, and at the same time, stock up on some food. You don't need too much, just enough for the two of you to expand your exploration area from where you are now in the cave.

Once a suitable temporary settlement is found within a safe area, the same steps can be repeated, allowing them to gradually move out of Falling Eagle Gorge.

As for the direction of movement, it will be based on the flow of the river.

If you keep going downstream, you will most likely be able to leave Eagle Falling Gorge eventually.

"I'll handle the collection," Ning Jinli solemnly instructed Xiao Qidi. "You're not allowed to run around anymore. Focus on recovering from your injuries. We can only move to the next location once you've recovered at least 70-80%."

Xiao Qidi asked, "Then what should I do?"

“You…” Ning Jinli pondered, “Keep an eye on the cave, don’t let the fire go out, and weave the grass I brought back into the ground for wind and cold protection. It doesn’t need to be fancy, just practical. You know how to do that, right?”

Xiao Qidi nodded. "Okay, I'll give it a try."

So, that morning, in addition to the most basic tasks of collecting firewood and picking wild fruits, Ning Jinli also brought back a bunch of long, thin leaves that looked like reeds.

Ning Jinli ran back and forth several times until she was so tired that her back ached. She was about to rest when she entered the cave and saw Xiao Qidi sitting by the fire, carefully weaving leaves. She suddenly chuckled.

Xiao Qidi looked up blankly, "What's wrong?"

Ning Jinli smiled and said, "I suddenly have a feeling... that I'll handle external affairs and you'll handle internal affairs, especially when I saw you making this, it was just like..."

"Just like what?" Xiao Qidi frowned slightly.

Ning Jinli grinned and said, "It's like we've become an ancient couple living in seclusion here. You're quite virtuous, hahaha!"

Xiao Qidi's cheeks twitched slightly.

As the ruler of a nation, it's quite embarrassing for him to be praised for his virtue.

But……

The sound of that sentence made him unable to stop the corners of his mouth from turning up.

"Miss Ning, how do you think my weaving is?" Xiao Qidi asked, picking up a piece.

Ning Jinli nodded and said, "Not bad, not bad, it looks quite like a raincoat."

Xiao Qidi's lips continued to curl upwards.

Around noon, the two ate wild fruits and two fish together. Ning Jinli rested for a while and then told Xiao Qidi that she had just seen wild boars nearby and planned to catch one.

Xiao Qidi's eyes trembled. "You? Catch a wild boar? Do you know how ferocious wild boars are?"

This wild beast has thick hide and a violent temper, so even hunters dare not easily catch it.

If you miss the catch, that's one thing, but if you anger them, the consequences could be dire.

How could Ning Jinli, a weak woman, who knew neither martial arts nor weapons, possibly catch a wild boar?

“I’ve thought it through,” Ning Jinli said as she pondered. “If we catch a wild boar, we can roast the meat into jerky, which is easy to store, carry, and fills us up. We can also skin the boar, clean it up, and wear it to keep warm and provide protection.”

“I’ll go catch it,” Xiao Qidi said decisively.

Ning Jinli narrowed her eyes slightly. "What, do you think I'm not good enough?"

Xiao Qidi said with a serious expression, "It's not that I think it's wrong, but you definitely can't do it. If something goes wrong, you could get injured at best, or even lose your life at worst."

Ning Jinli pouted, "Hmph, you look down on me."

Xiao Qidi said no more and got up.

Ning Jinli quickly pressed him down, "No, no, no! I know you're powerful. If you were to take action, killing a wild boar would be child's play, but given your current physical condition, it's best not to take the risk."

"Do you expect me to take such a risk?" Xiao Qidi's expression darkened slightly.

Ning Jinli chuckled, "I didn't realize you cared about me so much. But do you think I'm an idiot?"

Xiao Qidi frowned, pursed his lips, and uttered three words indifferently, "A little."

Ning Jinli stared into his eyes, "What do you mean by 'a little'? Does it mean you care about me a little, or... do you think I'm a little silly?"

Xiao Qidi answered, word by word, "A little bit of both."

Ning Jinli raised her hand and punched him on the shoulder. "You'd better talk less in the future. I don't mind if you're mute."

"Alright, enough of this nonsense," Ning Jinli stood up and patted his head with a smile. "I'm not going to fight the wild boar head-on with my bare hands. Of course, I'll outsmart it. There won't be any danger. You stay here and behave yourself. I'll go get you some pork."

Xiao Qidi was still uneasy.

He secretly followed Ning Jinli shortly after she stepped out of the cave.

The weather was much better in the afternoon than before.

The fog in the mountain stream had thinned considerably, and occasionally sunlight would shine through the gaps in the white fog, forming distinct beams of light.

Ning Jinli found the spot where she had previously seen wild boars. Sure enough, there were many hoof prints in the bushes, and the surrounding ground was also messed up.

This is clearly a route that wild boars frequently take when foraging.

Ning Jinli followed the trail a few meters into the bushes; beyond that lay a gloomy, primeval forest.

You can't just barge in like that, or you won't even know how you died.

She stopped where she was and glanced inside from a distance.

The jungle was so dense and thick that she couldn't see anything clearly. She felt a chill run down her spine, as if something in the shadows of the jungle was staring back at her.

"hiss……"

Ning Jinli gasped, touched her arm, and slowly backed away to the bushes.

There's a pit here, about two meters in diameter, filled with weeds and fallen leaves.

She broke off a branch and cleaned it up a bit, discovering that the pit was about one and a half meters deep, quite suitable for making a trap.

So they picked up some tree branches of suitable size with relatively sharp ends and stuck them into the pit, then carefully used long branches and vines to support and spread them on the surface of the pit.

During the ten years that Ning Jinli lived with Aunt Su, she often helped Aunt Su with chores, and she was quite good at these kinds of physical jobs.

After setting the trap, you still need bait.

Ning Jinli knew that wild boars ate a variety of foods, including plant roots, stems, tender leaves, fruits, vegetables, and even snakes, insects, rodents, rabbits, and carrion.

She picked a bunch of tender leaves and wild fruits from a high place that the wild boar couldn't reach, and then spread the leftover entrails from catching fish all over the trap.

There wasn't enough bait, but as long as it could lure the wild boars over, that would be fine.

Throughout the entire process, Xiao Qidi kept a close watch from a distance, afraid that showing up to help would upset her, and also afraid that she might accidentally have an accident.

As dusk settled over the mountain stream, Ning Jinli finally finished her work.

Xiao Qidi, who witnessed the whole process, was secretly surprised. He never expected that such a thin girl could do heavy work so efficiently.

However, the chances of catching a wild boar with such a trap are extremely slim.

Seeing that Ning Jinli was about to return, Xiao Qidi quickly went back to the cave first.

A short while later, Ning Jinli returned with heavy steps and lay down sprawled out on the bed made of grass and leaves.

"Miss Ning, you've worked hard." Xiao Qidi handed her a wild fruit.

Ning Jinli was too tired to speak. She took the fruit and put it in her mouth, but she fell asleep before she could even take two bites, with the fruit still in her mouth.

Xiao Qidi stoked the fire a little stronger, tore off a piece of cloth from the corner of his clothes, washed it by the river, and then carefully wiped Ning Jinli's face and limbs.

"Miss Ning?" Xiao Qidi called softly.

His response was Ning Jinli's soft snoring.

Xiao Qidi lay down quietly, his back to the chilly rock wall, and pulled Ning Jinli into his arms, facing the warm campfire.

One night passed.

When Ning Jinli woke up, Xiao Qidi had already grilled the fish.

"How did I fall asleep last night?" Ning Jinli asked, stretching.

As Xiao Qidi dissected the fish for her, he said, "Go straight to sleep after you get back."

Did I talk in my sleep?

"No."

"Hey, that's good."

Ning Jinli quickly stood up. "I'll go see if they caught the wild boar!"

Xiao Qidi watched her disappear into the cave and smiled helplessly. She was probably going to be disappointed this time.

He went to see it as soon as he woke up this morning.

Just as he expected, no wild boar fell in.

After a while, Ning Jinli returned dejectedly.

Xiao Qidi comforted him, "It's alright if they don't catch him."

"It seems I was too naive. Sigh..." Ning Jinli looked disappointed.

Xiao Qidi smiled. "After all, even traps set by hunters can't easily catch prey. Why don't we wait a little longer? Maybe we can succeed tonight. We still have fish to eat, don't we?"

Ning Jinli's expression was complicated. "The fish we caught yesterday are almost gone, right? I just went to the riverbank and checked. The fish seem to have learned their lesson. They're not wandering around the bank like they did the first two days. It'll probably be hard to catch them again."

Xiao Qidi remained calm and composed, saying, "I'll just eat less."

Ning Jinli lowered her eyes and whispered, "What do you think we should do if we all die here?"

"Hmm?" Xiao Qidi looked surprised. "Why are you saying this all of a sudden? This doesn't sound like the Miss Ning I know."

Ning Jinli asked, "What kind of person am I to you?"

Xiao Qidi pondered and said, "In my opinion, you are not someone who gets discouraged easily. After all, you even want to try to change the fate that I have already been destined for, don't you?"

"I'm so tired..." Ning Jinli hugged her knees, her eyes red-rimmed, gazing out of the cave. "I miss Aunt Su... I... I also miss my mom and dad..."

She's been relying entirely on willpower to get through these past two days, exhausting both her physical and mental strength. Now she's starting to feel the strain, and negative emotions are overwhelming her...