Chapter 3: ◎Prairie Model Working Leopard (3)◎
Fortunately, the opponent adjusted the angle when he threw her, and it didn't hurt much when she fell into a pile of bushes, otherwise, her hind leg would not have recovered.
The "culprit" brought back the stolen trophies, and the blood stains from the cheetah's body were still on his paws.
During the dry season when it is difficult to catch prey, robbing homes is also a good way to obtain prey.
Especially robbing cheetahs whose hunting success probability is higher than that of leopards but whose combat effectiveness is very low.
The unlucky cheetah had fresh wounds on its body, its tail exploded in a helpless rage, and it limped and ran in the opposite direction while turning around and howling.
If Shi Qiao could understand, she would definitely hear the cheetah cursing.
"Damn it, Klein, you robbed me twice in three days! You still let Leopard live!"
There was an angry howl in the middle. Shi Qiao tried his best to distinguish the leopard language and felt that the other person was probably acquainted with the culprit.
She didn't understand the other howls, but that didn't stop her from seeing the two small flames in the cheetah's eyes.
The prey that he worked so hard to catch was easily snatched away by others, and he was beaten for nothing. No one would be angry if it were anyone else.
A certain robber showed no trace of guilt. He put down the warthog in his mouth and roared impatiently at the cheetah, which turned its head frequently. Cudi, the cheetah, immediately shut up, ducked into the bushes with its tail between its legs, and disappeared without a trace.
He has stolen someone else's prey and he is still so arrogant?
Shi Qiao felt that the leopard standing next to her was the number one evil force in this grassland. In the human world, he would be wanted by the entire network.
In this pristine nature without any social rules, the beasts that rely on their strength are the outlaws. They are so wild and unrestrained that they even forget that they have a cub behind them when they have prey.
Shi Qiao had no choice but to stretch out her paw and pull on Klein's hind legs a few times to remind him of her presence.
There was no way to take both the prey and the small leopard in one mouth at the same time. Klein, who had just been so high-spirited and prepared to go back to the tree to enjoy the prey, then considered this issue.
He looked up and down at the little cub who couldn't help him in any way. His golden eyes showed a trace of hesitation. For a moment, he felt that taking care of the cub was too cumbersome.
Don't want it anymore.
When Shi Qiao met the other person's gaze, she understood it inexplicably and couldn't help but tremble.
If the leopard was thrown here in an unfamiliar land, it would be cold even if it didn't want to be cold. There were not even a few crooked neck trees here. She couldn't run very far dragging her injured leg and had nowhere to hide.
She could finally see that a certain leopard had no sense of mission or love to raise cubs, and it was purely a whim to raise her.
It is indeed a fantasy for a young and vigorous male leopard to have such a thing as "maternal love".
But after all, they had slept in the same tree and had dinner together, so Shi Qiao still wanted to continue hugging his thighs to try to fight for her own survival.
The little cub motioned to put the warthog down and picked it up in her mouth. She then grabbed the warthog's tail and dragged it one by one to carry it.
This position tested her biting strength, after all, this warthog was much heavier than her.
There was no other way. In order not to be thrown away halfway, Shi Qiao used all her strength to bite the prey, and her head was pulled so hard that she couldn't lift it.
The tall hay scratched her and the warthog's necks together. The tip of the little leopard's tail was so tight that the skin on the back of her neck, which was not painful at first, began to hurt. Her head became heavier and heavier, her mouth became more and more sore, and her deciduous teeth were almost torn loose by the unbearable weight.
After walking not far, the male leopard stopped, put the cub in his mouth on the ground together with the prey in the other's mouth, and then picked up the warthog.
Before Qiao could wait, the other party wrapped his tail around her waist like when she was on a tree, and easily put the little leopard on his back.
The field of vision in front of her suddenly became wider, and Shi Qiao sucked the sore cheeks.
Riding a horse, riding a donkey, etc. are all too weak.
She can ride a leopard!
The little cub held its head high, feeling very cool. Of course, the really cool thing was the other leopard who was willing to carry her on his back. The other leopard's image in her mind, which had collapsed due to the robbery, became taller again.
When they returned to the familiar zelkova tree, Shi Qiao hugged the other person's neck tightly with her front paws and was brought up two or three times.
It has to be said that the leopard can climb up the tree much faster than the ordinary elevator.
Shi Qiao was able to achieve the freedom of climbing up a tree without spending any effort. Only then did Shi Qiao realize the importance of holding a thick thigh.
Although the other party wanted to throw her away from time to time, her strength was here. If she goes out for a drink of water, she can grab prey and come back. With the uneaten half of the gazelle in the tree, food has been provided for the past two days.
As expected, she got hungry after a walk. She switched places between the dead warthog and the gazelle above and started eating fresh prey.
Gazelle meat is tender and delicious. Shi Qiao had already tasted it last night. She wondered if the wild boar meat on the grassland would be better.
But she doesn't have the right to choose the food. The boss eats whatever he wants, while the little follower can only sit and wait to be fed.
She ate a lot yesterday, so she is not very hungry now. When she first came here, she gnawed grass for two days, and there was no meaty taste at all. As a result, Shi Qiao now felt that it would be a waste of food to eat until she was so hungry that she panicked.
She wanted to save food, so she decided not to eat this meal and save it for the next meal.
But a certain leopard couldn't understand such a brain circuit.
Klein tore up the remaining internal organs in his abdomen and fed them to the little cub, but the cub actually refused to eat it.
It had been half a day since they last ate, they were far away from the water source, and the sun was almost setting as they lay back and forth.
Compared to himself, the little leopard ate very little. She must be hungry after all the hard work. When he was a cub, he just ate food when he saw it, no matter whether he was hungry or not. Otherwise, how could he grow so strong?
In the cruel wild, cubs that cannot eat are considered to be difficult to feed.
No wonder it was abandoned.
Shi Qiao was force-fed a mouthful of meat and had to open her mouth to accept the feeding.
Beasts rarely have the habit of saving money and saving food. She kindly helped the other party save food, but if the other party didn't appreciate it, then she had to be rude.
It's rare to see a little leopard cherishing its food. It takes every bite seriously without wasting anything.
Seeing that the cub's food tasted better than his own after the little cub had eaten all the meat he had torn into pieces and her belly was bulging again, Klein stopped feeding and ate his own.
Adult male leopards eat much more than cubs. The gazelle that Shi Qiao thought could still eat another meal no longer had any good meat, only the hard-to-gnaw ribs and limbs were left. The parts she ate were all soft and chewy, and the other party cleaned every corner.
Shi Qiao was a little disappointed when she saw only the remains of the gazelle after two meals.
Although such a large prey actually doesn't have much meat, it can't be eaten at all.
No wonder these ferocious beasts are not willing to waste time catching those small animals. It is not enough to stuff them between their teeth and consumes energy. It is better to eat them all at once.
In the eyes of cubs, the huge gazelle does not seem big at all compared to the size of an adult leopard.
A certain male leopard chewed the bones so hard that Shi Qiao felt her teeth sore just listening to it. The bite force was probably as strong as eating melon seeds on her head.
Only then did Shi Qiao fully understand the appetite of male leopards. The increase in revenue and expenditure reduction she imagined could not be realized at all. It would be good to be full when there was food, not to mention having an extra mouth to eat.
It's no wonder that the opponent is trying to steal prey on the way to drink water.
Shi Qiao was worrying about their future food rations, but what she didn't know was that after eating the gazelle and warthog, he would be able to recharge his batteries for several days and prepare for the next migration.
That's right.
The only nearby water source is about to dry up, and they have to follow the herbivores and continue their migration north.
This was one of the reasons why the other party wanted to throw her away.
Carrying a drag bottle that can't walk independently is definitely not as free as being a leopard alone.
Leopards like to live alone, unlike lions, which live in groups with families. They enjoy solitude and do not need to separate their own territories and prey.
Especially the young leopards who are just starting out are the low-key and cool loners on the grassland.
At that time, when Shi Qiao knew that the puddle was completely dry and he was leaving, she was prepared to be left behind.
Out of the moral principles between the same kind, it was very kind to help her extend her life for three or four days. It was a bit inappropriate for a newly adult male to migrate to a new territory with cubs he had never met before.
Animals have the habit of seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages, and it is even more impossible to raise their own competitors for other leopards.
Shi Qiao took a look at the male leopard, which was full of food and drink and lying on the branch of a tree with its eyes closed, and was mentally prepared in advance. There were no footprints of other beasts near the puddle, which meant that almost all the lions around her had left. When the other party decided to set off, she would become an orphan completely.
It doesn't have the skills of an adult leopard, and it doesn't know where the water is.
If she wants to continue to live, she can only find a way to follow the other person to a new place.
Without a leopard-shaped stroller, mobility would be a big problem. She had to take advantage of these two days to practice running with one leg in the air, Shi Qiao thought, and move the hind leg that was difficult to move.
She doesn't know if it's because of the cub's quick recovery or because she's been eating well these days, but her hind legs, which were so painful that she cried whenever she moved, can actually lift and put them down on their own.
Unexpectedly, eating a few more meals would have such a significant effect. Shi Qiao was amazed by the self-healing ability of animals and regained her confidence. She felt that she could live a little longer even if she was on the road alone.
She flexed her muscles near the treetop, and the swaying branches made the leopard on the other end open one eye. He found that the little cub didn't want to sleep peacefully, and used its tail to hook the other to her like yesterday.
Shi Qiao was still a little uncomfortable with sleeping next to each other for the second time.
The adult male leopard is too intimidating to the cub, putting his head next to the cub's chin. She is always afraid that the leopard will open his mouth and grind his teeth while the cub falls asleep.
The little leopard tried its best to hide its head and curled up into a leopard ball, like a kitten afraid of the cold.
The temperature difference between day and night in the grassland is large. It is hot when the sun is shining. Now that the sun is swallowed up by the horizon, it is much colder than during the day.
Shi Qiao's whole body was wrapped in warm fur, and she couldn't feel the cold wind at all. She originally thought about moving her head farther away from the other person's head, but she forgot all about it after falling asleep.
Her head came out carelessly to rest on the opponent's front paws, and her curled up body was soaked in the heat and stretched out.
It was a leopard's habit to sleep during the day and be active at midnight. This time she inevitably slept until midnight. This kind of schedule was completely opposite to when she was a human.
Shi Qiao woke up once in the middle and stepped back in fright after discovering her "heroic" sleeping posture.
There was nothing behind her, and if she took a wrong step, she would be in vain. Klein looked at the cub that disturbed his sleep, and his face was clearly angry about getting up.
Before Shi Qiao had time to adjust her sleeping position, she was restrained by a heavy paw. The little cub was squashed and could no longer move around. Instead, she was closer to the opponent's head, like a leopard-print glutinous rice ball that was "pia" on the opponent's body.
The other party was very concerned about the quality of sleep. Due to the boss's authority, Shi Qiao had no choice but to remain in this state and continue to act as a sleeping doll.
Fortunately, she also had an extra layer of protection, and she would not fall off the branches easily. The little leopard, who was not used to sleeping next to each other, slept more soundly than before.
As a result, even though the other party woke up, she still slept peacefully but was finally woken up by the big tail scratching her nose.
The little cub woke up and sneezed loudly.
Shi Qiao was very dissatisfied.
Why can't she move around when the other person is sleeping?
Why should she be woken up mercilessly when he sleeps?
Of course, she only dared to think about these in her heart. She still remembered that she still had to rely on his thigh to make ends meet, and it was not yet time for her to break away and work alone.
To survive, the main thing is to endure.
As usual, they went to the drying puddle to replenish water and came back to see if any unlucky cheetahs were hunting. Today was not as good as last time. The cheetahs had left this arid area where food was in short supply as early as yesterday.
Shi Qiao looked at the puddle where most of the soil was exposed and understood that it was time to leave.
On the way back, the little cub drooped her head and looked worried. She did not let the other person pick up the skin from the back of her neck but walked on her own initiative.
Klein looked at the little leopard who insisted on hopping on one leg. He did not pick her up but followed slowly behind her.
The feeling of walking on the ground again was better than expected, and a certain leopard was not impatient. Shi Qiao was very happy and gritted her teeth and walked more than half the distance.
In the end, she couldn't move anymore.
The little leopard had no choice but to turn around and ask the man walking the cub for help. The man then walked up to her, lowered his head, and picked her up.
After such exhaustion, her physical strength had been reduced by the time they returned to the tree, and her two front legs were trembling with fatigue. With the speed of the lame little leopard, it would be difficult to realize her plan of secretly following the opponent after being left behind.
While she was thinking about something, Klein had already dragged the warthog down from the tree and was preparing to eat.
This warthog is staying here for its last meal. After finishing this meal, they will hit the road.
This time, Shi Qiao resolutely refused to eat the tender belly meat of the prey. If the prey was offered to her, she would take it back.
The migration distance is unknown, and even if the other party eats all the warthog, it may not be enough, so she will not waste resources and leave the best parts to the leopard who needs it more.
For such a small leopard, even if it doesn't fight for food, it actually has to give up food.
Klein sneered slightly, flicked his tail, pried open the other person's mouth, and stuffed meat inside.
Shi Qiao's face was covered with blood stains: "..."
It's touching, but it doesn't have to be.
The other party exhaled through his nose impatiently, raised his front paws to hold the cub, and continued to feed it forcefully without any explanation.
She only eats a piece of meat as big as his palm in one meal. Even if he saves this small amount of food, it is not enough to fill his teeth.
Her arms couldn't twist her thighs, and Shi Qiao felt like a funnel. The other party was only responsible for filling it with food and had no room for resistance. The amount of food fed this time was more than the previous times, and she was forced to move backward to hide from the other party before letting go of her claws.
There is only so much of the best meat on a warthog, and now there is not much left.
The male leopard quickly emptied the food, leaving only the skeleton of a warthog in the blink of an eye.
Probably not enough.
Shi Qiao glanced at the other person's stomach, then cautiously crawled closer, wanting to stretch out her front paws to feel if it was deflated. Unexpectedly, before she could touch it, his tail wrapped around her waist and dragged her back.
The belly of an animal is the most vulnerable part, and a certain little guy was so bold that she didn't even realize that she would be torn apart by the alert beast.
Klein glanced at the clumsy little thing and understood that the other party had no intention of attacking. The little leopard's eyes were a little worried as if she knew that she had eaten food that should be completely his.
The kid with a bigger butt has this kind of realization, and it's even more interesting than before.
Thea, meaning a gift from afar.
He decided to call the other person by this name from now on.
A stubborn cub that didn't understand ignored his cries, and even wanted to touch his belly secretly.
But before her paws could move, the restless little tail behind her swung around and hit her legs, and her little thought was directly exposed.
"..."
He doesn't know where she came from, she is a stupid gift.