Chapter Ten: The Trap

Master Chen’s sudden action left me momentarily bewildered.

I set down my bow and asked in confusion, “What’s wrong, Master Chen? This wild pheasant meat is firm and fresh. Aren’t we supposed to be stockpiling food?”

Master Chen squinted at the few pheasants and then said, “Sanqi, look carefully. What do you see just below and to the right of those pheasants?”

“Below and to the right?” I muttered, turning my gaze accordingly. There, unmistakably, was a strangely shaped long worm-like creature, with two legs growing from its head.

A chill ran through me; the hairs on my skin stood on end, and I instinctively stepped back a few paces.

I knew this snake well.

This creature is called the "pheasant neck," scientifically known as the tiger-striped neck banded snake. It is venomous, though not lethally so. Anyone bitten by it, if rushed to a hospital within a few hours, won’t face a life-threatening situation.

However, while it doesn’t kill, it is known as a man’s bane.

It is said that once bitten, within half an hour, its venom damages the kidneys, causing irreversible renal injury.

In medical terms, kidney damage is among the most irreversible conditions.

So, upon seeing this snake, I was utterly speechless.

“Master Chen...” I whispered.

“Yes, Sanqi. In these old woods, no matter the situation, always look carefully first before making a decision,” he advised.

“Understood!” I nodded firmly.

After scanning the surroundings once more, Master Chen said, “Alright, Sanqi. I’ll go set traps deeper in the woods. You gather some mushrooms nearby. Tonight, we’ll make a wild game stew.”

“Got it!”

With that, Master Chen hoisted a coil of wire on his back and slowly walked into the dense forest.

I surveyed the area and soon reached the edge of the woods not far from where we stood.

The forest floor was dotted with colorful mushroom caps, and I began picking them.

I knew each mushroom cap bore a small notch; following these notches would lead to vast clusters of mushrooms.

But more important than finding mushrooms was discerning which were poisonous.

Since childhood, what we learned about mushroom toxicity came from textbooks: the more vibrant the color, the more poisonous it is.

To me, that was nonsense.

First of all, mushroom toxicity has nothing to do with color.

Let me put it this way:

The same species of mushroom, found in two different places, may be poisonous in one and safe in the other.

To exaggerate further:

Even within the same place, the same species can be either toxic or harmless.

Therefore, to determine if a mushroom is poisonous, I have my own method.

For example, if you want to know if a mushroom is toxic, the most important thing is to dig beneath its roots and check if there are no bugs at the base; or to see if the mushroom shows signs of being nibbled by insects.

If it has!

That proves the mushroom is definitely safe.

...

Following my own method, in just half an hour, I had gathered three large bundles of mushrooms, wrapped in my clothes, filling the doorstep of the house.

Shortly after, I saw Master Chen approaching, carrying the remaining coil of wire.

In his hands was a brilliantly colored wild pheasant.

Before I could say a word, he inspected the mushrooms I had gathered and nodded approvingly.

“Not bad, Sanqi. Looks like you remember quite a bit of what I taught you in the hunting grounds.”

I blushed and shook my head shyly.

Then an idea struck me, and I hurriedly said, “Master Chen, you’ve caught a pheasant, and I’ve got mushrooms here. How about we stew them together using the spring water from the mountain?”

As I spoke, my mouth started watering, imagining the delicious flavor.

But Master Chen did not accept my proposal.

He scanned the surroundings and said, “No rush. Right now... we need to dig pits.”

I was stunned.

Dig pits? Why on earth would we need to dig pits?

Master Chen fell silent for a moment, then leaned close to my ear and whispered a few words quickly.

What he said made me feel...

It was a little too cruel and ruthless.

But after hesitating for a long moment, I finally nodded.

“Alright, I understand.”

...

Then, we chopped down a tree trunk as thick as a thigh and cut it into stakes about one and a half meters long.

Sharpening one end, we began driving them at a forty-five degree angle into the ground.

The stake was driven nearly half a meter deep before being carefully pulled out.

We repeated this process.

In total, around our house, we dug nearly six such deep pits.

By the time we finished, the sky was completely dark.

After lighting a campfire near the house, we went to the creek to fill a pot with mountain spring water.

We plucked the pheasant’s feathers and placed it together with the mushrooms into the pot, letting it simmer.

Master Chen added only a pinch of salt to the stew—nothing else.

In the depths of the wilderness, eating wild game is about freshness and authenticity.

Adding soy sauce or other condiments would only mask the true flavor of the pheasant.

Sitting by the fire, inhaling the aroma of the stew, I relaxed and smoked a cigarette with Master Chen, chatting idly.

Looking at the six slanting pits we had dug that afternoon, I exhaled a plume of smoke and quietly asked, “Master Chen... do you really think these six pits will trap those creatures?”

Master Chen did not nod.

He said, “I’m not sure. I’ve never tried it myself. But this is how the knowledge was passed down. It should work.”

I silently nodded.

Actually, the reason we dug these pits was simple.

It stemmed from something Master Chen had just quietly told me.

While setting traps in the old woods, he had spotted three or four yellow weasels.

The term “digging pits” is a local slang for making these traps; they also go by a more elegant name...

The ice cellar trap.

Watching the richly fragrant stew bubbling in the pot, I was about to speak.

“Master Chen... I have a feeling...”

Before I could finish, Master Chen suddenly stiffened as if he had seen something terrifying.

He had been sitting leisurely but abruptly stood up, rigid and tense, his gaze fixed intently behind me.

His teeth clenched audibly, and his whole body trembled involuntarily.

I swallowed hard.

Though I did not understand what was happening, Master Chen’s behavior gave off a clear sense of danger.

Then,

A strange chill rose behind me.