Jingjing stayed behind, watching the remaining live animals. Tong Dingshan, Tong Chen, Huozi, and Biaozhi each carried two pieces of game back home, bringing two small carts from home to load the rest. Lishu took Tong Xi and Xiangbei back to the valley to observe the situation, preparing for the night's wild boar hunting.
As they returned, Xiangbei and the others emerged from the valley. It was almost noon, and the hunting activities had somewhat disturbed the valley's wildlife. Besides a few rabbits and mountain chickens by the water, there were no larger animals left. Lishu and Tong Xi swiftly caught some colorful pheasants, mountain chickens, and rabbits. Then, everyone headed back, covering several miles in half an hour, eager to have a meal and discuss the arrangements for the evening.
Approaching the Nitrate Cave, they spotted the figures of two teenagers at the entrance – the two younger ones in the Tong family. Seeing the returned game, they couldn't stay put. If it weren't for Tongfu's stern prohibition, they would have surely followed into the mountains. Excitedly, they rushed toward the group. Jingjing took charge of narrating the glorious moments of today's successful hunting, an exhilarating and bountiful experience for everyone. They had never encountered such an easy and fruitful collective hunt. The return trip to the house was swift.
Aunty Li and Old Medicine Master had already prepared large buckets of hot water at home. On the stone platform in the courtyard, they set up a stone fire pit with a big iron pot and began processing the game. Everyone, being seasoned in this, worked together efficiently – slaughtering, bleeding, and skinning quickly. However, they knew a tough battle awaited them in the evening, so the meticulous cleaning would be left to Aunty Li and a few others. The five live animals were temporarily locked in the firewood shed behind the kitchen. While it wasn't ideal to keep animals in the mountains, as it could attract larger carnivores, selling the fragrant deer in town for scent pouches would bring in a considerable sum. Surprisingly, two out of the three sheep were pregnant. According to mountain rules, mothers and their young were spared during spring hunting, so they wouldn't be slaughtered. The decision to release them would be made tomorrow.
After the rough tasks were done, Aunt Li cut several large pieces of fresh lamb and stewed a pot of sour cabbage blister soup. Everyone enjoyed a satisfying meal with the meat soup, flatbreads, and rice. Xiangbei brought out the hunting map he had just drawn in the room.
"Lishu, based on your plan in the valley earlier, I created this layout. What do you think?" Xiangbei asked.
"I did think about blocking the southeast cave entrance and northeast exit with bamboo thorn nets to prevent them from escaping. The harvest from hunting with arrows should be substantial. However, these two additional traps... could they scare them away from entering the valley altogether?" Tong Li was a bit puzzled. If the traps were placed on the northeast path, as soon as a couple fell in, the others might get scared away.
"Lishu, Tong Xi, and I carefully checked around just now. Those tuber plants are mostly on this side of the woods near the cave entrance. They not only will come in, but they will definitely come to this area. In other places, the plants are just sprouting in spring, but in this valley, yams and wild taro are ripe. I even saw sweet potatoes. With such a sweet fragrance, the incoming group should be quite numerous. They have thick skin and great strength; sometimes, it's not easy to injure them with just one or two arrows. Instead, the commotion might startle them, leading to a conflict. Relying solely on the force of the net might not be enough," Xiangbei explained.
"Xiangbei is right. If we can't avoid it, the people pulling the net might be in danger," Tong Dingshan said, causing a moment of silence. The truly dangerous predators like tigers and leopards were in the older forest further north, and encounters with brown bears were extremely rare. It was mainly the wild boar herds that posed a serious threat. Many severely injured people seeking medical help had encountered these brutal creatures, making them the primary danger for hunters.
"So, we need to dig a deep trench ten meters in front of the net, with bamboo spikes soaked in medicine at the bottom to reduce the force of them charging directly into the net. However, if we start digging this trap in the afternoon, we'll need a sturdy cover over it. We must let them all pass before uncovering it. This requires preparation of materials and a mechanical device, and the time is a bit tight," Xiangbei calculated silently, feeling that setting up such a configuration before tonight was a bit rushed.
"Let's postpone it to tomorrow night. Today, our activities have been quite noticeable, and letting the atmosphere in the valley settle down slowly is essential. We'll figure out the device that Xiangbei mentioned tonight, and tomorrow we can set it up properly," Tong Dingshan decided, and everyone agreed. It would also provide an opportunity to focus on processing today's game.