The two of them walked while constantly changing direction.
Without tree leaves to block the wind in winter, the scent of the two men and the dog drifted all over the mountain whenever the wind blew, so they had to walk against the wind.
They walked from morning until noon without seeing a single red deer track. The main problem was that the snow was too deep, reaching all the way up to their thighs, which made walking exceptionally troublesome.
Panting heavily, Second Uncle found a warm spot free of snow, squatted down on the ground, and lit a cigarette.
Changbai Mountain was a magical place. Deep in the old-growth forests, winter temperatures could plummet to forty or fifty degrees below zero, yet certain spots had not a speck of snow and even billowed with heat.
Although the area wasn't large, it was certainly enough to rest their feet.
After finishing their cigarettes, Second Uncle took out a pancake, rolled up some salted vegetable chunks, and the two of them sat there munching away with a crunching sound.
Dahei was gnawing on a cornmeal cake, its body covered in icicles.
After eating, Second Uncle reached out to grab a handful of snow from the side, chewed it in his mouth, and then spat it out. Then he grabbed another handful, chewed it, and swallowed.
"Let's have Dahei scout the way in a bit. If that doesn't work, we'll head back and do a sweep starting from the Fourth Logging Camp tomorrow. If there's nothing in this area, they've probably gone into the big earth pit or the ginseng farm."
Ning Jie nodded and said, "We've got to bag one this month no matter what, and then the two of us can take a break."
With less than a week left before December, Second Uncle gave Ning Jie a sidelong glance and said, "If you really manage to bag one before the end of the month, I'll slaughter an old hen for you to eat."
"You bet, I'll definitely get to eat that old hen."
Second Uncle patted Dahei and said, "Dahei, go check the area, see if there are any red deer. If not, come right back."
Dahei let out a bark and vanished into the snow in a flash, disappearing from their sight.
An hour later, Dahei came running back, huffing and puffing, and a look of disappointment crossed Second Uncle's face: "Looks like these critters aren't coming back this year."
"It's fine, Second Uncle. Tomorrow we'll go to the Fourth Logging Camp."
Ning Jie pulled Second Uncle up, then squatted down to pluck the snowballs clinging to Dahei's legs.
"Let's bag some pheasants and grouse, then head home."
A rabbit could sell for a yuan and a half. Big as those critters looked, they weren't fat in the winter, and wild rabbits didn't taste very good anyway, carrying a very strong gamey odor.
A pheasant could sell for two or three yuan, and a grouse was also two or three yuan. Though there was a considerable difference in their sizes, their prices were about the same, mainly because grouse tasted better than pheasants.
Ning Jie led Dahei into the pine forest. Grouse were also called tree chickens around these parts. In winter, they generally survived on fallen wild berries and pinecones, so the meat of these little critters carried a natural pine fragrance.
Some of the older generation who had eaten grouse felt that grouse meat was both fresh and fragrant, but they could never quite place the familiar aroma—which was actually just the scent of pine.
When Ning Jie used to roast grouse to eat in the mountains, that pine and fruity aroma was particularly distinct, truly a rare delicacy.
Precisely because of this, more than twenty years later, grouse became a second-class protected animal.
Some people always confused Eurasian jays with grouse. One belonged to the family Corvidae while the other belonged to Phasianidae; they weren't the same thing at all.
Besides, Eurasian jays were better looking, especially their wings, which were made up of black, white, and blue feathers, making them very easy to tell apart.
Just like grouse, Eurasian jays loved to stay in the pine forests. Before long, Ning Jie spotted a Eurasian jay perched on a Korean pine not far away.
He loaded his bullet, braced the gun stock against his shoulder. Despite looking like a rifle, a scattergun had an exceptionally large recoil; a slightly frail adult would be knocked flat by a single shot.
He exhaled, took aim at the Eurasian jay, lined up the sights, and pulled the trigger.
"Bang!"
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~~!"
Following the gunshot, the echo traveled far into the distance.
The Eurasian jay fluttered its wings a couple of times, flew less than two meters, and plunged straight down to the ground.
"Flap, flap."
The sound of birds beating their wings rang out one after another, as if someone had poked a hornet's nest, and all sorts of bird calls filled the air endlessly.
Dahei sprinted out, and after a moment, came trotting back with the Eurasian jay in its mouth, circling around Ning Jie.
Ning Jie reached out, and Dahei placed the Eurasian jay into his hand. Ning Jie casually tossed the bird into the back basket on his back and continued walking forward.
After walking for five or six minutes, Ning Jie spotted another tree chicken. Tree chickens looked somewhat similar to quails, though they were larger, and the feathers on their wings and the tuft on their heads were prettier.
He raised his gun again and pulled the trigger, dropping it dead with a single shot.
After collecting the grouse, Ning Jie circled the forest once more. With those two shots, all the birds had fled, so it was time to change locations.
A gunshot echoed from afar. Ning Jie cocked his ear to listen for a moment, heard neither Second Uncle's voice nor a second gunshot, and walked out of the forest with a relaxed sigh.
The ammunition he used was birdshot—cartridges packed with gunpowder and steel pellets, sealed with paper and wax. Firing a shot was like unleashing a storm of pear blossoms.
Its long-range lethality was very poor, but at close range, with a firepower coverage almost like a regional bombardment, anyone who wasn't a fool could usually hit their target.
As man and dog emerged from the forest, Dahei suddenly stopped dead in its tracks and let out a soft bark toward a distant patch of bushes.
Ning Jie peered intently at the bushes and instantly lit up with joy.
Well, what do you know—a big fluffy tail was still swaying back and forth inside the bush. True to being one of Northeast China's "two great fools" alongside the silly roe deer, it didn't even run away upon hearing gunshots.
Some people could catch pheasants even without a gun. These critters couldn't fly very far, and in winter, they were exceptionally lazy, plus they always thought they were hidden exceptionally well.
As long as you had the energy, you could chase them wherever they flew. Provided your stamina kept up, once the creature couldn't fly anymore, it would plunge its head straight into the snow, leaving only its backside exposed—much like burying one's head in the sand to hide from the world.
Ning Jie loaded his gun and made a downward-pressing gesture toward Dahei.
Dahei instantly understood. Hunching its back and moving as stealthily as a secret agent, it quietly crept up in pursuit of the pheasant.
When they were still five or six meters away, the pheasant suddenly reacted and spread its wings. At the same time, Dahei burst into a fierce sprint, while Ning Jie raised his gun into the air at about a seventy-degree angle.
Dahei was extremely fast, and the pheasant wasn't slow either, flapping its wings as it took flight. Never in its wildest dreams could it have expected that this naive-looking big black dog would leap into the air the exact moment it took off, jumping even slightly earlier than its own takeoff.
Well, I'm screwed. This son of a bitch dog anticipated my anticipation.
With a crunching bite followed by the crisp sound of shattering bones, Ning Jie lowered his gun, ejected the cartridge, and tucked it back into the bullet pouch on his waist.
Dahei truly lived up to its reputation as a veteran hunting dog; when it came to catching birds, it was the real deal.
Dahei trotted back, shaking its head and wagging its tail around Ning Jie as if asking for credit. Ning Jie smiled and took the pheasant, giving the dog a thorough petting that made Dahei immensely happy.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Two gunshots rang out less than ten seconds apart, and Ning Jie's expression changed drastically.
Oh no!