I see Qingshan

Chapter 9 Poaching
"Didn't you just say that you don't eat human food?"

The clouded leopard squatted on the ground, and the silence was deafening.

Tang Xin actually saw embarrassment on a leopard's face.

"I didn't expect there would be clouded leopards in this place..."

Tang Xin had heard from her parents earlier that there might be clouded leopards in this area, but she had never seen one in all these years. Today was her first day.

She observed the clouded leopard in front of her. Not only did it have a lame leg, it also seemed to have not eaten enough for years. Its fur was dry and its stomach was shriveled.

"Where's the bird?"

Tang Xin suddenly remembered that from the beginning till now, the gray bird and the white bird had not appeared.

She looked up and saw the two birds circling in the distance. They seemed to be afraid of the clouded leopard next to her, so they didn't dare to approach.

In her heart, she silently labeled the two birds as disloyal.

They clearly brought her here, but when they encountered danger they ran faster than her. How could this be okay?

"Come here quickly!"

Tang Xin waved at the two birds in the distance.

The gray bird stared at the clouded leopard so close to it: "Sister, I'm scared!"

Shiratori: "Sister, I'm scared too!"

The clouded leopard stared intently at the two birds on her shoulders: "Sister, can I eat them?"

As soon as the sound was made, the two birds flapped their wings rapidly to distance themselves from each other.

Tang Xin: "Stupid birds are not tasty. I'll bring you something delicious next time I have the chance!"

Clouded Leopard: "Sister, the food you brought is better than the food my eldest brother used to bring me!"

Tang Xin looked around and asked in surprise, "You have brothers. How many clouded leopards are there here?"

Clouded Leopard said, "I'm the only one!"

Tang Xin: "Didn't you just say you had a big brother?"

Clouded Leopard: "My eldest brother is a bear."

Tang Xin was stunned for a moment, then asked in surprise, "Is your eldest brother a bear?"

The clouded leopard nodded first, then shook his head. "It's hard to say. I think it's a bear, but the last time I saw Big Brother, it said it was an ox or a horse. It has to work twenty hours a day, doesn't have enough to eat, and can't hibernate."

Tang Xin felt like her head was about to smoke.

After thinking for a while, she suddenly realized: "He is in the circus?"

There was confusion in the clouded leopard's clear eyes: "What is a circus?"

Tang Xin was too lazy to continue on this topic. It was too tiring to communicate. She just patted Clouded Leopard's head and said, "I'm leaving now. I'll see you next time."

But before he had taken a few steps, he found that the clouded leopard was limping along beside him, never leaving his side.

Without waiting for Tang Xin to speak, Clouded Leopard took the initiative and said, "It's very dangerous here. I'll protect you."

Tang Xin didn't refuse and let Clouded Leopard stay with her.

The two birds were reluctant to approach and just led the way.

"Little Leopard, why is your leg lame?"

Tang Xin discovered that the clouded leopard's lame leg had two wounds, both of which were very serious. It was a miracle of nature that it could survive.

Clouded Leopard recalled the past: "Not long after my eldest brother left, a two-legged beast attacked me. My leg was trapped by the beast and then pierced by a piece of iron-tipped wood. Although I escaped, I almost died."

Hearing the sound, Tang Xin guessed that there were indeed poachers.

Clouded leopards are first-class protected animals...

No wonder it doesn't like humans very much.

Tang Xin sighed: "Then can you still hunt?"

Clouded Leopard said, "It's difficult. Most of the time, we mainly eat insects."

After saying this, the clouded leopard seemed to have discovered something and immediately flipped the ground with its claws.

Not long after, it dug out a nameless reptile from the mud.

Clouded Leopard: "This is crunchy and chicken-flavored. Do you want to eat it?"

Tang Xin's mouth twitched slightly, and she said, "That's not necessary."

Seeing that Tang Xin wasn't interested, the clouded leopard swallowed the insect whole. ...

About half an hour later, Tang Xin came to a forest under the guidance of the bird.

Some of the trees showed obvious signs of being cut down, and some only had a small part of their roots left.

The gray bird cried, "Here she comes, here she comes!"

Tang Xin walked forward to take a look and couldn't help but gasp.

There should have been several Metasequoia trees here originally, but they were all cut down, and now only one is left.

"Can she really communicate with us?"

The sound of Metasequoia trees echoed through the forest.

Tang Xin directly intervened in the conversation: "I can understand what you are saying."

When Shuishan heard Tang Xin's words, his voice was extremely excited: "Sure enough! It's true... Lord Mountain God! Lord Mountain God!"

"Mountain God?"

Tang Xin looked around: "Where is it?!"

Metasequoia’s voice trembled: “Lord Mountain God, please help us!”

Tang Xin then realized that the mountain god that Shuishan was referring to was actually himself.

Tang Xin: "Why do you say I'm a mountain god?"

Metasequoia: "When I was very young, I heard that the Mountain God would protect us. Since you can understand what we say, you must be the Mountain God!"

Tang Xin looked at the clouded leopard beside him and asked, "Have you heard of it?"

The clouded leopard was digging in a nearby mound of dirt, holding a thumb-sized insect in its mouth, its whiskers stained with soft mud. "Want some? It tastes like chicken and is so crunchy!"

Tang Xin: "..."

Metasequoia: "Lord Mountain God, many of my accomplices have been chopped down."

Tang Xin: "You mean companions, right?"

Metasequoia: "Almost. There are still many animals in the forest. Some are dead, some are captured... I think I will be dead soon."

Tang Xin seemed to be lost in thought. She had no doubt about what Shuishan said.

Along the way, there were indeed signs of logging, and even many traps set in the forest. Even animals under key protection, such as the clouded leopard, almost lost their lives.

This is probably not ordinary poaching.

After careful consideration, Tang Xin promised: "Don't worry, I will do my best to help you."

Shuishan ignored her explanation and said hurriedly, "Lord Mountain God, are you going to punish those humans? Great!"

Tang Xin: "Uh...that's right!"

This kind of thing should naturally be left to the police.

If she faced the poachers and loggers alone, she would be silenced.

People should do things according to their abilities. She will not lose herself in the constant calls of "Lord Mountain God".

Tang Xin asked for some more details, such as how many people were involved in poaching and logging, what weapons they had, how often they came, etc.

She needs enough information.

By the time we had gained more information, it was already dark, so we had to say goodbye to the Metasequoia and clouded leopard and leave.

……

Walking out of the forest, Tang Xin felt a little heavy.

She took out her cell phone, but found that it had turned off automatically due to lack of power.

"Forget it, let's go back to the inn first."

Tang Xin hadn't originally planned to call the police now.

This matter is of no trivial importance and will definitely attract the attention of the police. When they ask her why she appeared alone in the mountains in the middle of the night, she will find it difficult to explain.

Under the moonlight, Tang Xin returned towards the inn.

But after walking for a while, I heard a rustling sound behind me.

When I turned around, I found that it was a limping clouded leopard following carefully behind me.

(End of this chapter)