After eating, Li Long cleaned up the stove and sliced the mushrooms on the wooden table. By the time he finished, it was dark. He swept the wooden decking in front of the cabin with a broom, then spread the mushroom slices over it to dry.
Only after everything was done did he go into the large room to sleep.
When he woke, it was still dark. Li Long rubbed his face, got dressed, and went outside. Judging from the sky, he thought it was about time, so he picked up his gun and headed into the mountains.
The mountains were not quiet at night. Toads called in the streams, insects chirped in the grass, and occasionally a crow cried in the distance.
As he walked into the woods, he sometimes startled a bird or two, which flew off chattering indignantly.
Li Long crossed Mountain Ravine and reached the ravine where Lü Dafeng was staying. He did not disturb him, circling past fifty or sixty meters away from the tent before making his way toward the gully Lü Dafeng had pointed out.
After crossing a gully, Li Long slowed down. He took the gun off his shoulder and held it in his hands, bending low as he crept forward.
The light was so dim that he could barely make out anything twenty or thirty meters ahead. Li Long thought he had probably come too early.
There was wind on the slope. Li Long checked its direction and moved downwind. He knew wild boars had keen noses and did not want them discovering him while he lay in wait.
On his way down, Li Long saw that the tall grass in the gully did indeed show signs of rooting. It was too dark to make out exactly what plants grew there,