"A serow? A wild one?" Du Jianshan's expression changed instantly, and he threw the shovel in his hand to the ground. "Let's go, Tie Niu, take the gun!"
"Hey!" Wang Tieniu quickly picked up two gunpowder guns and stuffed a packet of dry powder into his pocket. "Guizi, where did that serow go?"
"Go west, over there at Shibanjian Gully!"
"lead the way!"
The three of them jogged along the mountain path behind the shack, their feet treading on dead branches and scattered rocks. Zhao Chenggui was panting heavily, but he still gritted his teeth and led the way.
Where are the three Lis?
"He chased after it, saying that the antelope was limping and couldn't go far. He blocked its path, and I turned around to call for help." Zhao Chenggui was still catching his breath.
"Well done!" Du Jianshan, carrying his gun, climbed up a slope along the bottom of the ditch. "Once we get there, don't make a sound. Set up an ambush."
They had just passed through a grove of low bushes when they suddenly heard a low growl coming from ahead—
"Oh dear—that's not a serow! It's a wolf!"
"Li San!" Zhao Chenggui's expression changed. "This is bad!"
Du Jianshan's eyes sharpened, and he immediately waved his hand: "Quick, flank the left flank, I'll go the right! Tie Niu, block its rear, don't let it rush back into the valley!"
"receive!"
The three of them split up and went around the rocky beach ahead. Less than two minutes later, they heard Li San shout from the front: "Brother Shan! Help—it bit my leg!"
Du Jianshan darted forward, and just as a gray figure lunged forward, a gunshot rang out!
The big gray wolf was shot in the shoulder by a gunpowder gun, rolled to the ground, and whimpered as it shrank back. Li San lay on the ground hugging his leg, his trouser legs soaked in blood.
"You little brat, you really dare to chase after something like that!" Du Jianshan quickly went over, kicked the wolf carcass aside, and squatted down to check. "Luckily, it didn't bite through any tendons."
"It hurts so much... This wolf jumped out from behind the rocky ravine. I thought it was a serow... Ouch, ouch..." Li San's face turned pale.
Wang Tieniu came over and took a look: "Tsk tsk, this wolf is really fat, and its fur is good too. We can dry it and sell it for money!"
"Don't pull that out yet, grab a piece of cloth to bandage the wound." Du Jianshan took out a leg bandage from his waist and tied a tourniquet for Li San. "You two, each support one side, hurry back to the shack, I'll deal with the wolf carcass later."
Zhao Chenggui and Wang Tieniu quickly helped Li San up and walked back, while Du Jianshan carefully approached the wolf carcass with a knife in hand. He stepped on the wolf's head, slit its throat with a backhand slash to confirm its death, and then felt safe to touch the wolf's belly.
“This guy… didn’t come alone.” He frowned. “He has old wounds, which means he’s a lone female wolf. The pack wouldn’t be too far away.”
He quickly tore off the wolf skin, cut off pieces of meat, wrapped them up hastily, threw them into a cloth bag, and carried it back to his hut. It was already getting dark, and the intermittent howls of wolves could be heard in the distance.
Outside the shack, Wang Tieniu was tending a fire around the woodpile, Li San was lying on a bamboo mat groaning, and Zhao Chenggui was carefully applying medicine to his wounds beside him.
"Brother Shan! You brought back wolf meat?" Wang Tieniu's eyes lit up.
"I brought it back, and I've skinned it." Du Jianshan tossed the things onto the kang (heated brick bed). "Is the water in the pot boiling? We'll stew meat tonight!"
"It's still early, I've scrubbed the iron pot three times!" Wang Tieniu grinned from ear to ear. "We'll have wolf meat soup tonight, and nourish ourselves tomorrow morning!"
Du Jianshan lit a branch to stoke the fire and walked towards Li San: "You're not badly injured. Rest tomorrow and don't move around too much, understand?"
"I heard you, Brother Shan." Li San looked ashamed. "I really didn't see that it was a wolf. If you hadn't come, I probably would have lost my life."
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