Li Long watched the wolves retreat, then looked at the wolf lying in the snow. After a moment's thought, he went down with his rifle and prodded it with his bayonet. From all the blood it had lost, he already knew it was all but dead, but caution mattered.
Seeing no response, Li Long grabbed its legs and dragged it up, laid it beside the deer, then hauled the plastic sheeting onward toward the Wooden Cabin.
Li Long remained cautious for the rest of the journey, but he saw no further sign of the wolves before he reached the Wooden Cabin.
He was safe for now.
There was no guarantee the wolves would not return, but at least he no longer had to be so on edge once he reached the Wooden Cabin.
After putting the deer in the small room, Li Long skinned the wolf outside the Wooden Cabin, pulled out its innards and threw them far away. For now, the meat from this one deer and one wolf was enough for him to deal with.
The wolf had three bullet holes, and so did the deer, making both hides damaged goods. The holes in the deer were not too bad, concentrated around its head and legs, so the hide as a whole was not greatly affected. Two holes in the wolf hide were in the belly, however, which did more damage. He did not know whether it would even fetch ten yuan or so.
After skinning the wolf and discarding its innards, Li Long carried the wolf meat into the small room and put it on the rack, then cut off a piece of venison and took it into the main room.
The fire in the stove was nearly out, and the water in the kettle was still