Living in a cave was naturally not a pleasant experience. Even the grown men didn't sleep well. As soon as it got light the next day, everyone got up.
Zhong Wanwan and Xia Ning, who lived in the small house, also got up very early because they were worried about the people living in the cave.
Early in the morning, Zhong Wanwan and Xia Ning cooked a big pot of pheasant soup with ginger slices, so that Brother Wei and the others could share it when they returned.
As for Yuan Tiezhu, Zhong Wanwan didn't say she wouldn't let him eat. After all, the pheasant was for the whole hunting team, and besides, they only brought an iron pot with them when they went up the mountain. If she used it, it wouldn't be right to exclude anyone else's share.
But after such a tense situation yesterday, with Wang Erlaizi and Zhang Liuzhi constantly harassing Yuan Tiezhu, even if he wanted to eat, he was too ashamed to approach them.
In a fit of anger, Yuan Tiezhu instigated his group to go hunting early in the morning.
The two large red deer were discovered by Yuan Tiezhu, so everyone in their group believed him today.
Yuan Tiezhu still wanted to press his advantage and continue hunting deer.
Red deer, well, they don't taste very good, and they're all lean meat with no fat at all.
But it couldn't resist its size; it weighed nearly 500 pounds, and it produced impressive results.
Anyway, as long as they get a high ranking, they get to choose the meat first. They didn't plan to choose venison, and even if it tasted bad, they wouldn't get to eat it.
If you're looking for delicious food with plenty of meat, then roe deer meat is the way to go. Luckily, Zhong Wanwan's group caught several roe deer, enough for them to share!
Yuan Tiezhu offered advice to the other two members of the group:
"Let's go to the same spot as yesterday, and we won't go back at noon today. Let's hunt a few more deer, and our team will definitely win this time!"
The other two also thought Yuan Tiezhu's plan was good, and the three of them hit it off immediately and went back to the place where they used to hunt deer.
After the three men left, Wang Erlaizi's eyes darted around and he said:
"Captain, Master Zhong, let's go with Yuan Tiezhu and the other two. I refuse to believe that with your marksmanship, you can't even beat those three when it comes to shooting deer!"
Brother Wei frowned and said:
"It's one thing for them to be eyeing the red deer, but let's not get involved. The animals in the mountains are usually localized; we can't keep targeting one scourge, or we'll drive them to extinction!"
Brother Wei learned hunting from his maternal grandfather, an old hunter. His methods are quite disciplined, and he always knows when to stop when hunting each animal.
Zhong Wanwan wholeheartedly agreed:
"Brother Wei is right. If our team goes there with guns, we'll hunt too many deer, and they might not even be able to keep up with the herds. If we run into a wolf pack, we could easily go extinct!"
Even if she disliked Yuan Tiezhu, it shouldn't come at the cost of disrupting the balance of the mountains. Besides, deer doesn't taste good, and she didn't want to end up with a huge pile of deer meat in her family!
Zhong Wanwan and Brother Wei both disagreed, and Wang Erlaizi said somewhat dejectedly:
"So what are we hunting today? We can't keep hunting roe deer and pheasants, can we? Even if we hunt them all day long, we still won't get as much meat as a single red deer!"
Speaking of yielding more meat, Zhong Wanwan had an idea and suggested:
"Are there wild donkeys in the mountains behind us? Those things yield just as much meat as deer, and they taste much better!"
Wang Erlaizi chuckled and said:
“Master Zhong, I’m not trying to discourage you, but the problem is that we don’t often encounter wild donkey herds around here, and there are rarely large herds. Usually, there are only a dozen or so, and we can’t hunt too many. They can’t compare to the herds of red deer.”
Zhong Wanwan was a little disappointed. She thought she would encounter a large herd of wild donkeys and collect more wild donkey meat, but it seems that she was just daydreaming!
Even if we only hunt a few, it's still okay. At least we can get some wild donkey meat, which tastes amazing!
Zhong Wanwan insisted:
"Let's give it a try. It's better than always hunting roe deer and pheasants. Even if we only catch 3 or 4, we'll still get a good amount of meat!"
That makes sense, and there weren't any other good options. Brother Wei listened to Zhong Wanwan's suggestion, and their group's main task today was to track wild donkeys!
Brother Wei, an experienced hunter, suggested that since the goal was to find wild donkeys, they should start their search in areas with water sources.
The group followed Brother Wei straight to the water source in the mountains.
It was a coincidence that they saw Yuan Tiezhu and his two companions lying in wait as soon as they arrived at the water source.
The three men hunted the red deer at the water source. To hunt red deer again, they would naturally guard the water source in the mountains.
Seeing Brother Wei arrive with his men, Yuan Tiezhu assumed they were there to intercept the goods, and he looked at them with disdain, saying:
"Captain Wei, you can't just pick peaches from other groups just because you're the hunting team leader. We're guarding the deer; you wouldn't be so shameless as to steal them outright!"
Brother Wei said coldly:
"Put away your petty thoughts. Water sources are the main places animals come and go. Every hunting team knows that. Just because you're here doesn't mean the other groups have to avoid you!"
Hearing what Brother Wei said, Yuan Tiezhu felt even more strongly that he had stolen the job, and hurriedly said:
"The water source in the mountains is so long, if you're not trying to cheat and steal our spot, why did you choose the same place as us?"
Brother Wei was so angry he laughed. He pointed to the water source and said:
"Yuan Tiezhu, you haven't forgotten who discovered this location, have you? What, just because you were here first, it's yours?"
Wang Erlaizi, hands on his hips, said:
"The captain brought us to this spot. Our hunting rule is that whoever finds a spot is responsible for guarding it. Yuan Tiezhu, hurry up and make way for us!"
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