Old Zhou crouched down and moved to his side, his eyes still glazed over: "Jianshan, that was really dangerous. If its corner had been half an inch off just now, it would have broken your ribs."
"Enough with the nonsense." Du Jianshan took a couple of breaths, pressing his chest to let the pent-up anger dissipate. "Drain the blood first, then get to work. Jianjun, get the hemp rope from the basket, and put a bandage on your hamstrings so they don't slip when you carry it."
Zhang Jianjun first exclaimed "Hey!", then couldn't help but swallow hard: "How heavy must this be? At least two hundred pounds. The brothers are going to have meat tonight."
Han Ligong, carrying his homemade gun, his eyes still scanning the woods, said, "I'll go upwind and see if there's a second one following us. Those shouts just now didn't sound like they were from a lone leader."
Du Jianshan pressed the knife against the pig's throat, slashed his wrist inward, and blood spurted out in an arc. He dodged to the side and casually ordered, "Go, don't go in a straight line, cut along the slope, stop when you hear the sound of dry branches, use your ears to find your way first. If you really run into something, don't be brave, fire a shot and retreat."
Han Ligong nodded and quietly left, his feet brushing against the grass.
Old Zhou squatted down and reached out to touch it: "It's hot." He laughed, "Good pig. Good teeth too, even tusks. The supply and marketing cooperative needs the hide. The fur isn't bad, so we can exchange it for two more bags of salt."
Du Jianshan grunted, turned the knife over, and made a cut across the stomach: "Jianjun, reach inside and hold the stomach in place to prevent the fishy smell from spreading. Be careful, it's hot."
Suppressing his excitement, Zhang Jianjun did as instructed. The heat and the stench of blood assaulted his senses, and he couldn't help but gasp: "My god, this heat is like a steamer. Brother, don't stick your hand in so deep. We need to check your ribs after you hit that tree."
“We’ll see when we get back,” Du Jianshan said in a strained voice. “Let’s let the heat out of its belly first and reduce its weight. Old Zhou, break off a bundle of pine branches and put them inside later so they don’t leak all over the road.”
The men worked quickly and efficiently, and in about ten minutes, they had removed most of the pig's internal organs, tied them into two bundles with straw rope, and hung them on a tree branch to cool off. Du Jianshan found a thin, straight elm branch, threaded it through the tendon socket of the pig's hind leg, and then lifted the thick carrying pole from underneath to test its weight. His shoulders felt a slight heaviness, and he gritted his teeth: "I can still lift it. Old Zhou and I will carry it for a while, and Jianjun, you can support it from behind so the pig's head doesn't drag on the ground."
A sharp cry of surprise came from deep within the woods, followed by Han Ligong's low whistle. Old Zhou looked up: "He's alright, he was just calling for safety."
"Let's go." Du Jianshan beckoned. The three of them first wiped the blood off the pigskin, then tightened their cotton-padded coats around their shoulders. With a push of the carrying pole and a shout in unison, the wild boar was lifted off the ground as their shoulders were simultaneously subjected to the force.
After walking a dozen steps, Zhang Jianjun's ears twitched: "Can you hear that? It sounds like there's water coming from the stream ahead."
Old Zhou laughed and scolded, "You're still thinking about drinking water right now. Let's get out of the fir slope first. The bottom of the ditch is damp, and if you slip, this thing will fall down and break your leg."
Du Jianshan's shoulders ached from the weight of the carrying pole, and a surge of pent-up emotion rose in his chest. He gritted his teeth, but his tone remained steady: "We'll switch shoulders at Shipo in a bit. Jianjun, don't rush to lift it. Wait for us to call you before you take over."
The group moved slowly along the ridge path, the pine needles crunching under their footsteps. Halfway there, a fox poked its head out, its yellow eyes flashing before it darted back into the bushes. Zhang Jianjun couldn't help but say, "Why don't we hunt one? We can trade its pelt for salt."
Old Zhou flatly refused: "Why bother? Foxes are clever creatures. If you kill one today, it'll learn all your tricks by tomorrow. Besides, we'll have to skin and bleed it when we get back, and that big pot in the canteen is waiting for us."
Du Jianshan smiled briefly, but the smile vanished in an instant: "Hunting isn't about shooting whatever you can catch. There are seasonal rules; you can't touch a mother fox when she's nursing her cubs. Just keep to your path, and only use your eyes to remember the forks in the road."
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