Chapter 262 - 117: Live Trap Cage for Catching Sheep (Part 3)
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In the vicinity of the mountainside, he searched for a few solitary trees, swung his axe to fell them, trimmed the branches of twigs, and after making them into suitably long sticks, he transported them back to the pile of boards in batches.
Having prepared the materials, he inserted a "Y"-shaped stick about two meters long into the ground, hung an oil lamp on it as a makeshift lighting tool, and began to make the first live trap of his life on this starlit isolated island slope.
A live trap like this is usually effective against small animals.
It is particularly effective when capturing squirrels, honey badgers, cats, and rats—animals that are not too big or too small and are greedy.
When facing larger animals like cattle and sheep, live traps can be limited by materials, creating problems that make it easy for prey to escape.
If it were a live trap welded from steel, it could even hold a Northeast Tiger, but a wooden live trap can hardly withstand the desperate struggles of its captives.
When Chen Zhou made live traps, his biggest worry was about their sturdiness.
After all, this was an area where sheep roamed. If a mother goat or other member of the flock got trapped inside, it was not impossible for the head of the flock or a big ram to attack the trap.
To prevent cooked ducks from flying out of the pot, Chen Zhou used almost all the rigging and canvas strips he brought with him, binding the live trap so securely that it was as solid as a fortress.
He even used more sticks for the "walls" on the six sides of the cage, emphasizing greater quantity without increasing cost.
He intended to let the greedy goats come in but never get out.
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While making the first live trap, he wasted quite a bit of time due to inexperience.
By the time he made the second live trap, Chen Zhou was much more adept and worked significantly faster.
With both traps made, it was already close to dawn.
At this time, the night was at its darkest, and the lamp oil in the oil lamp had mostly burned out, leaving the light dim.
The desolate wilderness began to wind up, with faint water droplets appearing in the air.
Looking up at the sky, Chen Zhou found that, unbeknownst to him, the moonlight and stars above were now blocked by clouds. Within the scope illuminated by the oil lamp, there was only himself and the newly made second live trap.
In the distance, the clip-clop sound, like horse hooves, was actually Lai Fu's running, though it was unclear what he was chasing this time.
On the ground were still a heap of leftover sticks of unsuitable length, and there were dozens of canvas strips in the backpack.
Not wanting to waste these materials, before the flock arrived, Chen Zhou made another small live trap, putting the last handful of coarse salt and a few pine nut shells inside, hoping this small trap would catch a lamb for him.
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At first light, he gathered the tools left on the ground and laid a few snare traps along the small path the flock took to leave.
Once the snare traps were set, a light rain had started to fall from the sky.
Having gone out without wearing a raincoat or a wide-brimmed hat, he feared that if the rain intensified, he'd get soaked and possibly catch a cold. Without taking time to watch for wild goats, he and a now thoroughly satisfied Lai Fu, who had played all night long, left the area.
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When he got back to the kiln cave, the rain hadn't yet poured heavily, not even getting his clothes thoroughly wet.
Upon entering the bedroom, without the wind, a delayed fatigue suddenly overwhelmed him — after all, he had stayed up all night without sleep.
Continuously exposed to the wind outside and never stopping his thoughts or work, he hadn't felt particularly sleepy.
Back home, Chen Zhou realized his stomach was empty, and he was extremely hungry.
The brain that had been alert earlier suddenly turned into a mess, muddled and slightly aching. Coupled with his damp and clammy clothes, he felt extremely uncomfortable.