Forest Ranger, starting from Picking Up a Lynx Girl

Chen Ying stepped forward, picked up Big Zai, and held him in his arms. The little fellow was quite heavy, a plump ball of fur with some solid weight.

Though Er Niu could be unreliable in daily affairs, there was no problem whatsoever when it came to feeding her children.

Seeing Chen Ying pick up Big Zai, Er Niu felt too embarrassed to keep feigning sleep. With the arrival of Little Snow Leopard Hajimi and Little Lynx Xinxin, she felt some need to maintain her dignity as an adult animal.

Jinya watched the commotion beside them, smiling silently.

Apart from the sleepy Big Zai, Second Cub and Third Girl quickly became acquainted with Hajimi and Xinxin. With the approval of their mothers, they ran up to the mountain to play. Hajimi, as he had previously said, took the time to teach his younger siblings hunting skills during their play.

Compared to Hajimi's natural enthusiasm, Xinxin was a bit quieter.

She didn't join her good friend in teaching the younger siblings but silently guarded them from the side.

In another part of the high mountain meadow area, aside from yaks and some other animals, there was a group of cute critters.

For instance, the Tibetan Fox and Mouse rabbit, and also the groundhog that liked watching the action.

Er Niu said that a family had recently moved onto the opposite mountain, consisting of two subadult Rabbit cats living where the sunny rocks met the meadow.

Chen Ying planned to visit the new neighbors.

After tucking the sleepy Big Zai into Jinya's arms, Chen Ying invited Dao Meihua to come along.

Besides the high mountain meadow, the opposite side also had a relatively wide rocky area, naturally including Streamstone beach.

The altitude there was even higher and the path much more dangerous.

They fetched safety ropes and climbing gear from the car and climbed up carefully, step by step.

"I see Red Rhodiola," Dao Meihua, feeling exhausted, remarked. The symptoms of altitude sickness certainly don't spare anyone because they have money.

"Judging by the height of the flower spikes, it should be Red Rhodiola. But the environment here is also suitable for Tanggu Rhodiola to grow. I need to get closer to check."

This slope was quite steep, and the debris from Streamstone beach was abundant; it was easy to slip and roll down if one wasn't careful.

Chen Ying climbed up a distance, found a rock suitable as a fulcrum, and secured the safety rope to it. After coming down, they both secured the ropes before cautiously approaching Streamstone beach.

"It's indeed Red Rhodiola. There are quite a few of them here, and the quality is quite good."

Dao Meihua sat on the broken stones, leaning back to take pictures and collect some samples to put in her backpack.

"There are some plants near that crevice in the rocks over there, I'm going to check them out. Wait here for me."

"Okay, be careful."

After checking the safety rope secured to her, Chen Ying escorted her a few steps before stopping.

Dao Meihua went to look for Tanggu Rhodiola, while Chen Ying sat down to photograph the surrounding high mountain meadow scenery.

Most of the distant mountaintops were covered with snow, the meadows were turning yellow, and the livestock were migrating downward. The number of animals like yaks visible on the mountain meadows had at least halved this time.

The gorge between the two mountains was the only choice for animals to shelter from the harsh winter.

The small family groups that dispersed during the summer now gathered into large herds. In the winter weather of cold winds and blizzards, they huddled together for warmth.

Putting away her phone, Chen Ying was about to ask Dao Meihua if she needed help when she saw several little ones approaching her.

Apart from Xinxin, the other three snow leopards had something in their mouths.

On closer inspection, they had dug into a Mouse rabbit burrow, hadn't they?

"Why did you catch two, you rascal?"

Hajimi dropped the Mouse rabbit he was biting, letting out a howl.

"Is this for Big Zai? Not bad, good brother."

Hajimi grinned like a happy puppy.

Second Cub and Third Girl also came over, their Mouse rabbits smaller, mud still on the edges of their mouths.

Clearly, this was evidence of rabbit burrow digging.

Yet, for the two little snow leopards to find a rabbit burrow and successfully dig out Mouse rabbits was already impressive, especially since they had not yet matured fully.

From another perspective, Hajimi and Xinxin's proficiency in rabbit burrow digging owed much to Er Niu's firsthand teaching.

So, had the boomerang finally come back to hit one's own children? Snow leopards digging rabbit burrows would be an unbearable outrage in the hearts of other snow leopards.

Fortunately, there was a Snow Leopard at home who could correct the children's misconceptions.

No, not really misconceptions.

During the hard-to-endure winter, having a rabbit burrow to dig was also a kind of happiness.

He still remembered what Uncle Tashi had encountered during a mountain patrol last year—a snow leopard mother who used up all her energy to catch prey, only to have it snatched away by three stray dogs.

The picture taken by Uncle Tashi showed the helpless and sad gaze of the snow leopard mother, which really cut him deep.

Under such harsh weather conditions, being able to dig a rabbit burrow to fill one's stomach was indeed very fortunate.

Of course, the Mouse rabbits were not keen on accepting this kind of happiness.

Third Girl, a little more timid, didn't dare come this way. She stopped at the edge of the meadow and started biting the Mouse rabbit.

Their milk teeth were not very effective, making it a bit hard to break through the defenses. Xinxin, guarding her, reluctantly helped tear open the rabbit's skin.

Third Girl boldly left a bloody lip print.

Chen Ying could swear on his cell phone that Xinxin's expression was absolutely three parts disdain and seven parts helplessness.

The meat from large prey might be a bit tough for the little snow leopard cubs, but Mouse rabbit was different; its meat was so tender it melted in your mouth, the favorite snack of the little ones.

However, Er Niu felt digging rabbits for herself was fine, but doing it for her children was too wasteful of time and energy. So unless they happened upon them, she rarely offered these delicious small treats to them.