As Shen Miaomiao crossed the stone boundary, wolfdogs burst from every direction, racing toward her, followed closely by an old uncle and his sons.
A family of hunters lived near the outskirts of the mountains; they were the first to notice the distant noise and hear the barking of dogs. Their family had the responsibility of maintaining the rope fence, which was not meant to block anyone, but rather as a warning tool to prevent the children from straying into the deep mountain and getting lost without the adults' knowledge.
Every now and then, the fence also warns them when something is making its way down.
"Climb up!" Shen Miaomiao shouted, and the three little dumplings scambled to the nearest tree, rolling over the slope in their hurry.
Shen Xingshen can't climb, but Shen Miaomiao easily pushed him up.
The old hunter met with Shen Miaomiao, carrying two wooden shotguns, passed one over, and whistled to the hunting dogs.
A furious herd of wild boars, riled up by the kidnapping of their young and charging with reckless abandon, stormed into human territory. The one at the front lowered its tusks, ready to strike, but a pack of wolfdogs leapt into the fray, scattering the invaders in a storm of barking and lunging at them, giving Shen Miaomiao just enough time to load her wooden shotgun.
Shen Miaomiao fired, injuring one boar in the eye, while the old hunter readied his shot. Just then, sturdy farmers wielding their hoes rushed in to rescue, circling the moving meat.
They pick and choose and distribute the prey among themselves.
After splitting into teams with practiced ease, they whistled commands to the dogs, sending them to harass the wild boars. The villagers then darted off in all directions, turning the chase into a whirlwind of chaos yet an orderly hunt.
Shen Xingshen clung to his not-so-tall, not-so-sturdy tree, watching the wild commotion unfold. Below, Shen Miaomiao stood guard, deterring anything that dared come near.
His eyes shone just as bright as the villagers', submerging himself in the excitement that buzzed through the air.
After the villagers lured away the majority of the wild boars, Shen Miaomiao and the old hunter easily ended the remaining few.
Meanwhile, Qiao Dali, the old hunter's eldest son, along with his cousins, lured the wild boars with both excitement and dread.
Village dogs flanked the wild boars, barking and snapping, and herding them in the direction of the humans. If a boar tried to veer off, a well-aimed stone or a flashing knife would send it right back on course.
The team of youngster kept the beasts on their tail, baiting it with their jerky rhythm; never too quick, never too slow, and almost got bitten a few times on their rare, narrowly dodging a disaster.
After all, a wild boar wasn't just big and meaty; they were aggressive wild beasts that could outpace humans in a run.
If not for their experience of living too close and hard-earned familiarity with these beasts, they would have long since been rammed to death.
The group darted towards the old pig shed, flung open the door, and dove inside. The wild boars, hot on their heels, barreled in after them.
The energetic youngster of the village jumped onto the walls and stood at the brick fence, while the slower ones scrambled for the beams, hauling themselves up just in time.
"Quick! Close the gate!"
"Wait! Wait! It's too close to my butt!" Qiao Erli screams in circles, rolling to evade an incoming boar, only to come face to face with another one after changing his direction. Scared out of his wits, he cried out and attracted the more wild boars towards him.
Seeing he was locked with hundreds of pounds of meat ready to trample him to death, he screamed his lungs out, turned, and headed back to the entrance.
The pig shed might be old, but it was still made of stone and brick, with a sturdy beam and a thatched roof. The gate, though, was made of who-knows-how-old wood!
"Don't!!!"
"Turn around! Don't lead them to the door!"
"Climb up!"
"Are you deaf and blind?!"
Before he can pull himself up, the wild boar will chew him up first!
Others died of hunger, but he will die buried under the feet of running pork!
Wuwuwuwu!
"I will get out quick! and you slam the gate real quick— AAAAHHHHH! The other one is coming to me!!! I'm going to diiieeeeee!!!"
Qiao Erli screeched, showing his strong lung capacity.
A sickle came flying like a boomerang, missing him by an inch, and hit a boar by the handle, which just angered the already rampaging beast.
Others, "...."