Forest Ranger, starting from Picking Up a Lynx Girl

Jinya and Leopard Sister's roars scared Old Gao out of his wits.

He even thought some other fierce beast was attacking and immediately picked up his walking stick, pointing the sharp end outward.

The next moment, he saw Jinya and Leopard Sister pounce toward Chen Ying.

Coincidentally, Chen Ying was also startled by the roaring and was about to prop himself up to check out the situation.

Instead, he was forcefully pinned down to the ground by Jinya and Leopard Sister. Σ(°ロ°)!

"What's going on? What's the deal with you two? Spare my life, please!"

Hearing Chen Ying's voice was normal, Leopard Sister stepped back and gave him a serious look.

Then, a big flat hand slapped across.

Chen Ying was struck by Leopard Sister for the first time and was thoroughly confused.

"Why are you hitting me?"

Leopard Sister had held back her strength, or else Chen Ying's head wouldn't have stayed on his shoulders.

"What's with all the ghostly yelling? You scared the hell out of Leopard."

Leopard Sister roared back, baring her teeth, her expression extremely fierce.

Jinya originally wanted to take the opportunity to put ointment on Leopard Sister's eyes, but seeing that expression, it chickened out.

"You nearly scared me to death too," Jinya approached, rubbing against Chen Ying's chin with a wronged look, "Leopard Sister and I came back and saw you down; we thought something happened to you."

Chen Ying then understood, quickly straightened his attitude, and apologized to Leopard Sister; he had scared her, and he definitely wouldn't dare to collapse recklessly again.

Old Gao, holding his walking stick, looked at them with cold eyes and a disdainful expression.

If this were like a novel, where animals could turn into humans, Chen Ying would probably become a central air conditioner.

Little Jin brought Beibei and Little Fox back, perfectly missing the scene that had just occurred.

But Jinya moved quickly, performing a vivid reenactment for Little Jin.

Little Jin looked at Chen Ying disapprovingly but didn't say anything.

Under Little Jin's guidance, the two little cubs each caught their own targeted prey.

They were still young, especially Beibei, who normally had poor eyesight and a weak body and could only catch mice and rabbits; today, it had caught a plump pheasant by itself. On the way back, it strutted so proudly, practically creating a breeze as it walked.

Little Fox, being quick-witted, knew not to steal Beibei's thunder. It caught a rabbit the size of two palms, holding it in its mouth, and followed Beibei back, hoping for praise in its small eyes.

After apologizing to Leopard Sister, Chen Ying turned to see the two little darlings with looks of anticipation on their faces, lavishing them with praise.

Old Gao then picked up Beibei and kissed its forehead fiercely.

"Beibei is so awesome, catching such a big pheasant; come on, hold it, I'll take a photo for everyone to see."

Beibei didn't understand Old Gao's words but perfectly grasped the meaning.

Holding the pheasant, it struck a pose for Old Gao to capture its most satisfying photo.

No favoritism shown.

Old Gao also hugged Little Fox and gave it a kiss before taking a series of photos for it.

Seeing that both little cubs had taken nice photos, Jinya approached, stretched out its paw tip, hooked onto Old Gao's clothes, and softly called out.

Old Gao rarely had the chance to touch Jinya up close, let alone when Jinya initiated the contact himself.

He took the opportunity to pet the smooth-furred lynx thoroughly. Before Jinya could struggle, he quickly let go and gave Jinya a series of photos too.

Chen Ying didn't touch the little friends' prey; he just cleaned up the wild rabbit that Little Jin had brought back, preparing to roast it for eating.

There were also fish in that small stream, not big in size, the largest only as long as a palm and as wide as two fingers.

He examined them carefully, ensuring there were no "lifers," scooped up three or four with the cooking pot used for boiling water, and prepared to make a wild vegetable and fresh fish soup.

Both of them had experience in wilderness survival, and at the very least, they knew which things they could eat and which they couldn't touch.

They also picked some mushrooms, varieties they recognized, planning to grill them on a slab of rock.

Brother Leopard and Leopard Sister ate meat, so they scraped up some scraps, mainly to get the animal fat for frying mushrooms and cooking noodles in soup.

At dinner, the female tiger wandered over and loitered for a bit.

She didn't get too close; from a distance of more than ten meters, she sprawled lazily on a rock.

These past couple of days had been a real break for her: well-fed and well-rested, practically the life of her dreams.

It was a pity these guys were leaving, or else she might have been able to raise her little cubs even stronger.

The female tiger hadn't considered moving with her cubs; she'd finally found this current dwelling, which was very much to her liking, and for now, wasn't keen on leaving.

But in a few months, she might have to find another place to live.

After all, five cubs, grown larger, the current cave might not be able to hold them.

The cave these guys were staying in seemed pretty good; maybe once they left, she could bring her cubs over?

The female tiger leisurely licked her paws while pondering her future cub-rearing plans.

Suddenly, Jinya and the rest looked alertly toward the water source.

The female tiger stood up too, and three seconds later turned tail and dashed back.

With cubs at home, she couldn't afford to take risks.

"Eh, what are you two kids here for?"

A man emerged from behind the bushes, his dark, weathered face showing suspicion, a long sickle in his hand.

"What are you here for?" Chen Ying retorted, her hand already on the sickle handle, while Old Gao gripped his trekking pole tightly.

After a standoff, the old man pulled out an old-fashioned cellphone from his pocket, swiped it on, and glanced at the two of them.

"Hey, are you two from Jiamu Gully First Aid Station? One surnamed Chen, and the other's surname is what?"

Old Gao felt a vein in his forehead pulse, what's the deal, a three-person first aid station, and he doesn't deserve a name?

The old man pocketed his phone, came closer, and found a rock to sit on.

"I'm a Forest Patrol Officer from Dumb River, specifically came over here to check the situation. Starting a few years ago, this area is prone to flooding and mudslides in the summer. While I was coming in, our station chief mentioned you two kids were on the mountain and told me to lend a hand if I saw you."

The old man rattled on as if he hadn't spoken to anyone in days, clearly eager to talk.

Old Gao wanted to inquire about the tigers, but Chen Ying subtly stopped him.

"So uncle, you're a Forest Patrol Officer too, I thought we had run into... heh heh."

"You two are quite brave. This place used to be called Wild Wolf Valley. After frequent flooding, the wolves moved away. If my family hadn't been mountain folk for generations, no one would dare enter these deep woods. In case something happened, you wouldn't find anywhere to call for help."

The old man looked up, right at the place where Jinya and Little Jin were staying.

Chen Ying still didn't let her guard down, scoundrels won't have 'bad guy' written on their faces, and she couldn't take his word for it that he was a good person.

Perhaps the old man sensed their wariness as well; he didn't stay long before taking his leave.

"I'm familiar with the mountain. There's still plenty of daylight left, so I'm heading over to the next spot to stay the night. It's good if you two are alright; make an early exit from the mountain and don't wander around aimlessly in here. If you want to get out of the mountains early, follow this gully downwards, and when it merges with another, take the path on the left up the mountain. Follow the ridge for a couple of ranges, and you will reach the Dumb River Protection Station."

The old man also left them two tobacco leaves.

Ordinary people aren't used to smoking this stuff, but if injured, burning it to ash and applying it to the wound helps stop bleeding.

The old man quickly disappeared out of sight.

From the direction he was heading, it was mostly the same route they had taken; no wonder there had been no reports of tiger sightings here.

Of course, it was also possible that it was deliberately concealed. After all, on him, Chen Ying smelled a faint scent of traditional Chinese herbs. And tiger bones are a rare and valuable medicine.