Volume One, Chapter 8: The Salt-Licking Trap

Wang Dong turned away in frustration, ready to head back, only to see the few foolish muntjacs that had just slipped into the forest now cautiously peeking out from the trees again.

Looking into their innocent eyes, as pure as those of college students centuries later, Wang Dong felt a flicker of anger but couldn't maintain it.

If only he had a gun in hand, those little creatures would have long been lying on the ground!

But the problem was, he didn’t.

His most powerful ranged weapon at the moment was a slingshot, yet a slingshot could only hurt these creatures slightly, never kill them.

It was only good for teaching these silly muntjacs a lesson, nothing more.

Seeing them emerge again, Wang Dong lazily waved his hand, intending to return to his shelter.

But these muntjacs seemed to have singled him out; they hopped and bounded after him.

Whenever Wang Dong turned around, they stopped, standing not far off, pouting and tilting their heads as they watched him.

If he started walking toward them, the little creatures would turn their backs and present their fluffy white rumps as if waving a white flag in surrender.

Wang Dong turned away, and they turned away; he glanced back, and they followed again.

After several rounds of this, Wang Dong truly lost his temper.

This was blatant provocation!

Half an hour later, panting and exhausted, Wang Dong sat by the stream, watching the muntjacs vanish into the darkening woods.

He had come to understand.

It wasn’t that muntjacs were particularly clever; rather, these few were very clever.

Perhaps because they lived close to the village, they had encountered humans trying to capture them early on, making these little ones shrewder—they never allowed Wang Dong to get too close.

Once he closed the distance to within a dozen steps, they would immediately scatter.

Grabbing them barehanded was going to be difficult.

After resting for a while, Wang Dong returned to his shelter.

Eating the rice with roasted meat paste and pickled vegetables, he then took out the steel wire he had just acquired.

Without a gun, his only option to catch these muntjacs was old-fashioned methods. Although he couldn’t make frozen urine traps now, he had other means, which were even cleaner.

His desire to catch these muntjacs wasn’t because they had provoked him.

As the top mystical beast of Northeast China, muntjacs were creatures most hunters could catch but preferred not to.

Firstly, they were simply too foolish. Those deep in the wilderness who had never seen humans before would foolishly approach hunters to see if they carried food. Such naive creatures were the safest reserve food for hunters and were rarely hunted unless necessary.

Secondly, muntjacs were of little practical use.

Most game animals had key valuable parts: pelts to sell, meat to eat, and sometimes special items like musk, tiger penis, or bones used in medicine.

But muntjacs were different.

Their meat, while wild game, wasn’t particularly tasty. To Wang Dong, if it was for stewing, he’d rather have chicken than muntjac.

Like other wild animals, muntjac meat had a strong, unpleasant odor and was tough, with an earthy scent during the first boil.

To stew it well required plenty of seasoning and long cooking to remove the earthiness.

Then there was the pelt.

Muntjac fur was good but only if it was in good condition.

Muntjac pelts made into pads were excellent for insulation and warmth during Northeast winters but only suitable for personal use.

Most wild muntjacs suffered from insect damage or scratches from clumsy encounters, leaving many holes in their fur, making it hard to find an intact pelt.

Even if caught, selling the pelts would result in a loss.

But these shortcomings didn’t bother Wang Dong.

He planned to roast the meat, and once the aroma of charred meat filled the air, who cared if the meat was tough?

As for the pelts, since he lacked good bedding and robes, and couldn’t sell them for much, he decided to keep them for himself.

He just needed to spend some money to have them properly made.

After crafting the steel wire noose, Wang Dong boiled it in hot water to remove the oily smell, then soaked it in the cool water of the stream to eliminate any remaining scent.

Muntjacs didn’t mind human scent, but the trap wasn’t necessarily only for muntjacs.

In the forest, both carnivores and herbivores loved licking salt, so he might catch something else.

Still, thinking it over, Wang Dong adjusted the noose to be smaller.

He didn’t want to trap a wild boar, which could not only break the wire but also run off with it, causing him to lose both his trap and the animal.

The next morning, Wang Dong rose early.

Though last night’s rain had held off, today’s weather was still gloomy, with the sun occasionally peeking through the clouds.

So, he decided to set the trap first.

Using a carving knife, he shaped a wooden board with a recessed center and raised edges, then mixed soybean paste and salt with stream water to make a salty broth, pouring it into the center of the board.

He placed the board over a fire, keeping it at a distance to slowly dry the salty mixture.

He had considered making the salt lick using his own urine, as he had before, but since he had to eat the muntjacs, he opted to invest a bit in salt and paste instead.

Downstream by the creek, he found a tree and tied the salty lick board to it with steel wire.

Next, he surrounded the board with branches, leaving only one opening for the muntjacs to stretch their necks in to lick.

Finally, he hammered a deep wooden stake into the ground nearby, positioned the steel wire noose aligned with the opening.

Though this was his first time setting a trap himself and it wasn’t as skillful as Old Man Wu’s, it would suffice.

The muntjacs would have no trouble reaching the salt lick, but when they tried to run...

Heh heh...

The wire noose would tighten instantly, gripping their necks firmly!

After finishing, Wang Dong grabbed his bag, shovel, and slingshot, preparing to head up the mountain.

With the sun peeking out more, he planned to venture farther, not only to hunt some gray dogs but also to see if he could dig up any medicinal herbs.

The mountains these days were full of good herbs—it all depended on his eye for them!