The Entire Mountain Is My Hunting Ground

The V-shaped forked branch was caught on the tiger’s neck. Zhao Jun threw his weight into his arms and slammed the tiger’s head into the snow.

"ROAR... ROAR..." The tiger let out a defiant roar, its limbs thrashing as it struggled to get up and fight back.

But the tiger was on a thick blanket of snow. Every time it thrashed, its limbs only sank deeper, and with its neck and body pinned down, it was completely unable to break free.

"Help!" Tao Dabao yelled, his head whipping from side to side. "Hurry, get over here!"

Tao Dabao was in a panic, but he didn’t even need to shout. More than thirty militiamen, led by Yu Xuewen, were already speeding toward them on skis.

Yu Xuewen skied right up to the tiger’s head, slung the semi-automatic rifle from his shoulder, flicked off the safety, and pressed the muzzle against the animal’s skull.

Then, Yu Xuewen shouted to the others, "Tie it up! Now!"

At his command, the militiamen swarmed forward, pulling out hemp ropes. They frantically cleared the snow from around the tiger’s limbs and began tying the ropes to its legs.

The tiger let out a series of low growls, but it was pinned and hopelessly outnumbered. Powerless to resist, it could only let the men tie twelve thick hemp ropes to its four legs.

And that was only because Zhao Jun stopped them.

If he hadn’t, the men would have tied all thirty-odd ropes onto the tiger.

It was a good thing Zhao Jun told them that if they did that, the tiger’s legs would be crippled.

Only then did the men stop.

After tying ropes to each of the tiger’s limbs, the militiamen worked together, pulling hard in all directions. With a single heave, they hoisted the nearly four-hundred-pound Northeast Tiger into mid-air.

Its head now free from the snow, the tiger roared incessantly, but its limbs were completely immobilized.

But something even more drastic was to come. The militiamen coordinated, yanking on the tiger’s legs until they flipped it over, from its stomach onto its back.

It was a tigress, and being flipped onto her back brought to mind a Northeast saying: a she-tiger climbing a tree upside down.

Next, the men trussed the tiger up like a pig, tying all four of its legs together. They then threaded a long pole between its bound paws, and with a man at each end, they began carrying it up the slope.

Yu Xuewen lowered his rifle and grinned at Tao Dabao. "I never thought that trick would actually work so well."

Tao Dabao nodded and said to Yu Xuewen, "It’s all thanks to Zhao Jun..." As he spoke, he looked around, but there was no sign of Zhao Jun.

Yu Xuewen realized it too and turned to look. Not far off, Zhao Jun was kneeling in the snow, a dog cradled in his arms.

Usually, when a hunting dog was injured, its eyes would be glistening and watery as it blinked up at its master.

But at this moment, Hua Xiao’Er’s eyes were filled with ferocity, staring at the empty mountain slope, its open mouth puffing out clouds of white breath.

A deep gash had been torn into Hua Xiao’Er’s left side by sharp claws, revealing broken ribs through the wound.

Across from Zhao Jun, Li Baoyu was already sobbing uncontrollably, his heart filled with nothing but regret and self-recrimination.

The moment the tiger had charged down the slope, Li Baoyu had instinctively glanced at Hua Xiao’Er. But the dog hadn’t barked or made a sound, lying quietly at his feet.

Li Baoyu had thought Hua Xiao’Er was scared. He never imagined that in the split second he was distracted by the spectacle, Hua Xiao’Er would bolt.

Zhao Jun reached out, slowly stroking Hua Xiao’Er’s neck. He could feel the dog’s breathing growing fainter.

Zhao Jun bent down, leaning close to Hua Xiao’er’s ear, and whispered, "Hua Xiao’Er, I’ve been hunting for twelve years, and I’ve never seen a lead dog better than you."

Zhao Jun’s voice was quiet, but Hua Xiao’Er could hear him, as could Li Baoyu, who was across from him.

But at that moment, Li Baoyu was so consumed by self-blame and regret that he didn’t even register what Zhao Jun had said.

But Hua Xiao’Er had heard him.

And when the dog heard Zhao Jun’s words, he blinked. When he opened his eyes again, the ferocity was gone, replaced by the same glistening, watery look as always.

He tried to turn his head to look up at Zhao Jun, but in the next instant, his eyes closed.

This time, they would not open again.

Zhao Jun looked down at him, silent for a moment. Then, he cradled Hua Xiao’Er’s head with his left arm and supported his body with his right. Heedless of the blood still seeping from the wound, he lifted the dog and started walking up the slope.

There was no shortage of pine trees on the high mountain. Zhao Jun chose the largest red pine in the area and buried Hua Xiao’Er at its base, covering the spot with a thick layer of snow.

"Zhao Jun, about this..." Tao Dabao walked over. He wanted to tell Zhao Jun that he and Yu Xuewen had discussed it, and the brigade would offer some compensation for the loss of his dog.

But looking at Zhao Jun’s expression, it seemed money and food tickets couldn’t possibly make up for this. So, Tao Dabao couldn’t bring himself to say the rest.

"Uncle Tao." Zhao Jun’s voice was hoarse. Without turning his head, he said, "Do you have any cigarettes? If so, give me a few."

"I do, I do." Tao Dabao quickly pulled a pack of Ying Chun Cigarettes from his pocket. He assumed Zhao Jun was in a foul mood and wanted a smoke to calm his nerves. He was surprised when Zhao Jun took the pack and the matchbox, removed four cigarettes, and then handed the pack back.

’Is he going to chain-smoke them?’ Tao Dabao thought, but he didn’t try to talk him out of it. He watched as Zhao Jun tucked one cigarette behind his ear, struck a match, and lit the other three at the same time.

With each cigarette he lit, Zhao Jun turned it upside down and stuck it, filter-first, into the snowdrift in front of Hua Xiao’Er’s grave.