On the fifth day, Li Sheng brought food to the leopard again. Although there was plenty of food, the leopard seemed even weaker. It had only been a few days since it was injured, and it had become skin and bones. After losing its ferocity, it had become much more docile. Now, it was also surrounded by the aura of maternal love. Many kind-hearted people hoped to help this mother leopard.
People from animal rescue stations sent messages to the program team, but the program team rejected them all, citing their refusal to interfere with the survival of wild animals.
Therefore, everyone could only place their hopes on Li Sheng.
"Take a bite, take a nap and you'll feel better."
"Take a bite, take a bite, just for the sake of the child."
"Whether it survives or not depends on whether the leopard eats it. Its wounds need to be treated manually, as they have already started to rot. If left untreated, it won't live for more than a few days."
Li Sheng knew that the leopard was seriously injured, but if it cooperated, he was more than 90% confident that it could survive.
Li Sheng even cut the tuna meat into small pieces, so that the weak leopard wouldn't have a hard time eating it.
Animals have such a keen sense of smell that it immediately sensed something was wrong with the meat. Although the leopard didn't understand the concept of poison, it was still very clear about what was edible and what was not.
So she just sniffed around the food without rushing to eat it, but she was very hungry and her body was no longer able to hunt. However, if she didn't hunt, she would have no food and no milk, and her babies would not be able to survive.
The cheetah considered picking out a weaker one to eat to supplement its nutrition, so that the stronger one could have more milk and water.
But in the end, they are all its own children. All living things have feelings, and it wouldn't do this unless absolutely necessary.
It was very hungry, so even though the food in front of it had a strange smell, it still ate it. The two-legged creature in front of it had already given it food many times, so the cheetah wasn't that wary.
After taking the first bite, it couldn't stop eating; it was so hungry. But after finishing, the leopard immediately collapsed, limp and powerless.
Like an enlarged version of a cat under anesthesia about to be neutered, the four leopard cubs were completely unaware that their mother was in great danger. They stumbled toward her, whimpering at her feet.
Since the cubs were in the way, Li Sheng put them directly into his basket, intending to pack them up and take them with him. He also planned to pack up the mother leopard and take her with him later.
The cubs were in the basket on his back, and the mother leopard was like a boneless lump of soft meat, carried on Li Sheng's shoulder, just like a tyrant in a TV drama who forcibly abducts a woman.
Soon the leopard was brought back to the yard. The little girl adored the cubs and held them in her arms, gently stroking them.
The group of leopard cubs, still staggering as they walked, seemed particularly fond of Milk Ball, and soon they all snuggled up in Milk Ball's arms and fell asleep.
Li Sheng quickly prepared for the surgery.
To be honest, he didn't know how long the anesthetic would last. Li Sheng first rinsed the cheetah's wound with clean water, and then began to scrape away the rotten flesh from the cheetah's body with the axe.
At this moment, the mother leopard must have been terrified, unable to move and left to be slaughtered.
The little girl sat to one side and gently covered the leopard's eyes with her two little hands, whispering, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid. If you can't see, you won't be afraid. Daddy is here, everything will be alright."
Li Sheng was unusually serious; the stench of the rotten meat was disgusting, and maggots had already begun to grow on it.
His hands were very steady as he carefully cut away the rotten flesh bit by bit. He was neither a doctor nor a veterinarian, and his technique was hardly professional.
However, if someone with such steady hands could become a surgeon, it would be a great blessing for the patient.
The rotten flesh was quickly cleaned up, very carefully without missing a single spot. Next, the wound was stitched up, which was quite crude, given the limited tools and the cheetah's thick skin, it took a lot of effort to pierce through it.
He was sweating profusely from exhaustion, but the stitched-up appearance showed that he had some obsessive-compulsive disorder; the stitches looked very good.
"This skill is much better than the doctor who stitched me up during my C-section."
"I'm serious, I'm not kidding. I'll let the streamer stitch me up during my C-section, that way I'll feel more at ease."
"She has some talent; it's a pity she's not a doctor."
"We have many talents in the wild; we can excel in any field."
...
After finishing, it wasn't over yet. Li Sheng crushed some herbs and placed them on the wound to inhibit bacterial growth and accelerate healing.
Only then did the milk ball release the leopard's eyes. The leopard's anesthetic was slowly wearing off, and it was already able to move slightly.
Although it was an injured cheetah, it was still a bit dangerous for the milk group. Li Sheng said, "Don't go out of the shelter alone these days. It's not a kitten; it's very dangerous and could eat you up in one bite."
The little girl was very obedient and led the older girl inside to play. However, she made a funny face where Li Sheng couldn't see it. She was a cute little devil.
Li Sheng patted the leopard's head as he packed his things, and said earnestly, "You'd better behave. I hope you can tell the difference between one meal full and another full. One full meal means I'm going to stew you. You can't hurt anyone, understand?"
The mother leopard seemed to understand, let out a soft moan, and continued lying down. The leopard was weak, and he still needed to prepare some good food for her to replenish her nutrition.
There's still plenty of tuna meat, enough to feed him for now. But now we have another big eater, so this much food will probably only last a week at most. He'll have to hunt more diligently.
The mother leopard probably knew that everything Li Sheng did was to save her, so even after the anesthesia wore off and she could move again, she still lay in the straw nest that Li Sheng had prepared, licking her cubs and her wounds, occasionally making gurgling sounds.
This is probably a common trait among felines; they make this sound when they are very comfortable.
Although the female leopard wasn't as large as the older sister, her appetite was far greater. Most importantly, she only ate meat and couldn't eat vegetables; she could eat twenty pounds a day.
Looking at the mother leopard happily munching away, Li Sheng's face fell. He regretted taking her in; who could afford to feed her with that appetite?
I was thinking these tuna would last a week, but it seems they'll be gone in four days at most.
So in the following days, several more leopard cubs followed me around while I cooked—the mother leopard and her cubs.
The mother leopard also liked the meat soup that Li Sheng cooked because it was salty. After the food was improved, the mother leopard's complexion visibly improved, although she still had some difficulty moving around.
But at least there's enough milk to feed the four leopard cubs.
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