"My God, what is this thing?"
Fu Ming muttered to himself, while Fu Wan and the others remained silent.
Before their eyes, a small animal they had never seen before was curled up under a tree, with a homemade animal trap stuck in its leg, and the soil beneath it was even stained red with blood.
When the little animal saw several unfamiliar two-legged creatures approaching, it tried to curl up into a ball, but as soon as it made a move, it cried out in pain again.
The squirrel was clearly an old acquaintance of the little animal, and it was so anxious that it jumped around nearby, running to Fu Wan one moment and then back to the little animal the next.
He was so anxious he was almost about to speak.
Fu Wan slowly walked over, and only when she got closer did she recognize what kind of animal the little thing curled up in a ball was.
That's one of the oldest animals on Earth, a living fossil in my country's animal kingdom—the pangolin!
That damned bastard put animal traps deep in the mountains!
After recognizing the pangolin, Fu Wan was no longer afraid. She was still wearing gloves for picking chestnuts and carefully went up to try to pry open the trap on the pangolin's foot.
"Ah Wan, be careful it doesn't bite!"
Fu Ming grabbed Fu Wan and stopped her.
Fu Wan told him to let go, "Brother, Uncle, didn't you realize it's a pangolin?"
"It won't hurt anyone!"
Pangolins get their name from the tile-like scales covering their bodies, which resemble ancient armor. They live in forests and mainly feed on insect larvae such as ants and bees, especially termites.
It is well known that termites are a serious threat. They have a high reproductive rate and are very destructive. Without animals like pangolins to control termites, forests would cease to exist.
Ye Jianguo was furious. He had thought the creature looked familiar, but he was too far away to recognize it as a pangolin.
Unexpectedly, someone dared to set animal traps deep in the mountains and even injured a pangolin.
It should be noted that although many villagers in Qingshan Village go up the mountain to catch wild rabbits and the like, the village chief has repeatedly emphasized that some wild animals cannot be caught.
Pangolins are one of them, but they are generally nocturnal and live deep in the mountains. This is the first time Ye Jianguo has ever seen one.
"Ah Wan, I'll open the bear trap!"
Ye Jianguo stepped forward. Perhaps because of his tall stature, the pangolin was so frightened that it curled up into a ball, its tail protecting its injured leg, and the trap was also pressed down on its body.
What should we do?
The squirrel was so anxious that it jumped around next to the pangolin and squeaked. Fu Wan thought for a moment and asked Ye Jianguo to go to the side first. She then quietly went to the pangolin and gently comforted it.
"Little one, we won't hurt you. We're just going to take those things off your feet. Don't be afraid!"
As soon as Fu Wan finished speaking, the little squirrel squeaked twice, seemingly agreeing with her and trying its best to convince its timid friend.
You believe me, this two-legged creature isn't a bad person. She even picked big chestnuts for me!
Perhaps sensing that Fu Wan meant no harm, or perhaps the pangolin heeded the squirrel's advice, it slowly opened its curled-up body, revealing its injured paw.
Fu Wan's eyes reddened at the sight of the exposed claws. The animal trap was clamped tightly onto its little claws, leaving them a bloody mess, which made Fu Mingye and Lin feel a pang of pity.
"Uncle, please teach me how to open this animal trap!"
Ye Jianguo responded and then guided her to feel under the animal trap. With a strong pull, Fu Wan gritted her teeth and pried it open. It took a lot of effort to open the trap, and then she quickly threw it aside.
"Ah Wan, I brought some medicine for injuries, could you sprinkle some on this little guy?"
Ye Jianguo took out a small bottle from the inside pocket of his clothes; it was a wound medicine prescribed for him by the old Chinese medicine doctor in the village.
He always carries it with him when he goes up the mountain, just in case he gets injured and can save himself.
Fu Wan took the medicine bottle, uncorked it, and carefully sprinkled the medicine on the pangolin's injured area. The pangolin, as expected of a mountain spirit, did not struggle despite the pain and let Fu Wan apply the medicine.
After the medicine was applied, the pangolin seemed to feel much better and stopped making noise. Fu Wan noticed a small hole nearby, which she guessed was its burrow.
It must have just gone out to find food and accidentally stepped into the animal trap.
Ye Jianguo picked up the animal trap. It was a very ordinary trap, but he didn't know if it had been set by a villager from their village.
He needs to go back and ask the village chief about this. If any villagers dare to sneak up the mountain to catch pangolins or other rare animals, the village chief will definitely have to intervene.
The pangolin was probably exhausted. After the medicine was applied, it used its tail to move itself into a small hole nearby, and then it actually fell into a deep sleep right there at the entrance of the hole, completely oblivious to everything else.
They really have a big heart.
Judging from its appearance, there shouldn't be any ferocious beasts nearby that would eat it. But thinking about it, with its armor, it probably has no natural enemies other than humans.
"We've picked enough chestnuts, shall we head back?"
Ye Jianguo glanced at the snakeskin bags next to the four of them and thought it was about time to go back.
Fu Wan nodded in agreement, and after taking one last look at the pangolin and squirrel, she turned to leave.
There are many trees in the mountains and forests, and quite a few branches have fallen.
As Fu Wan turned to leave, a thick tree branch blocked her leg. She picked it up, intending to break it off and take it back to make firewood.
But as soon as she picked it up, she felt that something was off about the branch.
"Hey guys, take a look at this branch, doesn't it look a bit strange?"
Fu Wan held up the tree branch in her hand. The branch was long and had many twigs.
What's even stranger is that there are no traces of leaves on it. Usually, the ends of branches are pointed, but this thing is rounded.
A vague idea popped into her mind. She took the bottom of the branch in her hand and placed it on Fu Ming's head. Hmm, this is more like it.
"Oh my, what kind of branch is this? It's a deer antler!"
Ye Lin slapped his thigh, while Fu Ming, holding the branch in Fu Wan's hand, looked completely bewildered.
Ye Jianguo was walking at the front. Hearing the noise, he turned his head to look.
"Oh my, these really are deer antlers!"
He moved with lightning speed, quickly walking over to take the deer antlers from Fu Wan's hands.
"Judging by its appearance, it's an antler that detached on its own. It must be at least several decades old. It's a good find!"
After the antlers fall off the deer's head, they become what people commonly call deer velvet.
Deer antler can be used as a traditional Chinese medicine, and it has the effect of strengthening muscles and bones and replenishing essence and blood.
Fu Wan was secretly delighted. She picked up another deer antler that looked similar from the ground and weighed it in her hands.
"These two antlers must weigh at least twenty pounds together, so this trip up the mountain was definitely worth it!"
"Wasn't it worth it!" Ye Lin couldn't help but exclaim.
"As the saying goes, good deeds are rewarded, and that's absolutely true! If Ah Wan hadn't come to rescue this pangolin, how would we have found these two huge deer antlers?!"
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