Forest Ranger, starting from Picking Up a Lynx Girl

"So, you're asking me to help replace Ali to send you to Zhuonai Lake, and then he'll come straight here to switch shifts with me?"

"Yeah, are you not willing?"

"It's not about me being willing or not, will your team leader agree?"

"This sub-project is mine, as long as I agree, it's fine. Of course, the premise is that he must come to Yang Lake to switch shifts, otherwise the captain will definitely not agree."

Every family has urgent matters, and Yin Li's teacher knows the captain's teacher, so they can surely offer this small convenience. As long as it's not excessive, others won't say much.

If you expect someone else to do the work for the whole trip, and you just add your name at the end, who would willingly agree? That would turn into a scientific mercenary, wouldn't it?

Since Qin Ruobai said it's okay, let's just trust that she can sort it out. Considering her fondness for Yin Li, she probably wouldn't sabotage him.

Besides, the worst outcome is just missing this opportunity for promotion.

The day after Yin Li left, Chen Ying accompanied Qin Ruobai and another researcher, bringing Jinya, Little Jin, and Little lynx deep into the uninhabited area.

Accompanying them were the Mountain Patrol Team.

The team members will stay with them until Zhuonai Lake, lodging in the temporary detection station buildings by the lake, and set off for the next location after three days.

Chen Ying had never been to Zhuonai Lake during this season, with the lake frozen by ice and the doors blocked by sand.

"We just cleared this area last month when we came to patrol, see, it's blocked again."

The team members sighed, skillfully took out tools to clear the sand dunes and opened the door. Inside the room, a thick layer of sand had also settled.

Taking advantage of the time before nightfall, the team members quickly cleaned the rooms, generated electricity, and started a fire to cook.

Water was directly taken by breaking the ice, boiled in a pot, and stored in flasks.

The team members will stay with them here for one night, and the next day they will continue patrolling along a fixed route, while Chen Ying and the two researchers will stay here for three nights.

If all goes smoothly with Yin Li's side, he can meet up at Zhuonai Lake in three days. If they haven't seen him by the time of departure, Chen Ying will send Qin Ruobai and the others to the next point.

Jinya and Little Jin took Little lynx out hunting and brought back a wild rabbit for Chen Ying.

Chen Ying didn't eat it; he hung it under the eaves to let it freeze naturally for preservation.

This way, if food is scarce, it can feed the three cats.

After all, this season, there are very few small animals active around Zhuonai Lake. Jinya and Little Jin took Little lynx far away to find a rabbit nest and returned without eating too much.

At night, with temperatures between minus thirty to forty degrees, they'd freeze to death outside.

Before they came in, Chen Ying prepared warm sleeping bags for them.

The three squeezed together, sleeping beside Qin Ruobai, providing her some warmth.

In this place, don't talk about separation between men and women; everyone sleeps in the same room, each with their own sleeping bag, just divided between left and right sides.

The next morning, another researcher wanted to open the door to go outside, but Chen Ying stopped him.

"Why? Can't open the door?"

"It seems like there's something guarding outside." Chen Ying walked to the window, lifted the windproof curtain, took a look, and saw only a furry leg.

"It should be a Tibetan brown bear, be careful, I'll go check."

Without going through the main door, Chen Ying climbed out through a side window, cautiously approaching the main entrance.

A Tibetan brown bear was lying at the door, smacking its lips.

Looking up, the rabbit under the eaves had disappeared, most likely ending up in its belly.

During this season, Tibetan brown bears shouldn't have fully come out of hibernation, and their activity range is near the valleys. Only when Tibetan antelopes migrate here to breed do other carnivores follow.

Unexpectedly, before May, there was already a Tibetan brown bear active near Zhuonai Lake.

This brown bear seemed unfamiliar, a male, based on Chen Ying's judgment, likely just recently becoming an adult, spending the first winter alone after leaving its mother.

It might not have hibernated or got disturbed during hibernation and woke up early.

However, this guy chose to move in the deep uninhabited area, suggesting it still lacks life experience.

Chen Ying jumped into the car, started it, and the noise woke the brown bear. It got up, looked at Chen Ying's car, bared its teeth, and ran toward the vehicle.

Chen Ying drove out to draw it away and discovered a herd of Tibetan Wild Donkey in the west.

The brown bear also seemed to notice the herd, paused to look at the vehicle, then at the wild donkeys, and finally decisively ran toward them.

Typically, Tibetan brown bears prey on wild rabbits and ground squirrels by digging holes, occasionally hunting ungulates and their young only when extremely hungry.

This brown bear probably hasn't eaten much since waking up from the east, looking much skinnier than autumn bears do, likely all skin and bones without its fur.

Not fixating on the bear's hunt, he needed to return to the Observation Station to ensure the safety of the two researchers.

He parked the car at the entrance, leaving just enough space for people to squeeze through sideways, thus preventing the brown bear from breaking in again.

When going out to take samples, Chen Ying called Little Jin to come along.

Jinya took Little lynx to find ground squirrel and rabbit dens.

In the season when the ice hasn't melted yet, digging a hole is also a very difficult task. You have to walk far, away from the water, to find a place to hide food.

By the time they collected enough samples and returned to the Observation Station, it was almost lunchtime, and Jinya and Little lynx came back with their prey.

It was half a wild donkey left uneaten.

"We found it. A bear killed a lot and was eating there. We went over to have a few bites, and it didn't mind, so the two of us brought the leftovers back."

Jinya urged Little Jin to hurry up and eat a few bites; the cold weather drains energy too much, and you can't withstand this damn temperature without eating more.

The three cats finished this half donkey, which was enough to last them two or three days without foraging.

Chen Ying threw the leftovers farther away; if they attracted other carnivores, it might increase the danger.

What Chen Ying didn't expect was that by evening, the bear came again, and it even brought food.

It unhappily slapped the car hood, howling to push the car, but when it couldn't move it, it wanted to squeeze inside.

Chen Ying was scared, so he told Qin Ruobai and another researcher to hide in the room while he grabbed a thick wooden stick, went past, and reversed the car a bit.

The Brown Bear lay on the hood and stared at him for at least five minutes before it shook its head, dragged the food into the yard, and slowly walked to a corner of the empty pen to sit down.

The food was tossed aside; it yawned, curled up, and rolled onto the haystack, falling asleep immediately.

"This bear is quite naturally sociable."

The two researchers exchanged glances, awkwardly making a "cold joke."

Qin Ruobai didn't respond; she looked outside from the window just in time to see Chen Ying squatting by the pen, examining the wild donkey's carcass.

"Tibetan Wild Donkeys have already moved into the nearby grassland this season, which indicates that the ecological environment here is gradually becoming suitable for them to live in. This year, the climate in other places is abnormal, and it's uncertain if the Zhuonai Lake area will be affected."

They study natural ecology; these seemingly inconspicuous little problems might be the beginning of some changes.

"It's already recorded. I checked the historical data; the earliest recorded presence of a Tibetan brown bear in this area was mid to late May, coinciding with the Tibetan brown bear's more active mating season. It's unclear if this young brown bear appeared here by accident or if there are other bears entering this region. We need to expand our viewing range to gather more data."

While they were discussing, Chen Ying came over and opened the door.

"The Tibetan Wild Donkey was killed by a bear paw. This Brown Bear doesn't look powerful, but its strength might not match its size. Do you want to record its data?"

"Of course, we do, but can we?"

"I'll give it a try," Chen Ying said as he picked up his medical kit.

He brought quite a bit of equipment this time, including an ICU chamber, just in case there was a need for emergency equipment and medication.

After all, this is a "three-no" area, and everything depends on themselves.

Qin Ruobai and the researcher squatted by the door while Chen Ying used a tape measure to measure the Brown Bear's height.

Weight certainly couldn't be measured, but the blood could be stored in a specialized device in the car for a short time.

Seeing Chen Ying unhesitantly prying open the Brown Bear's mouth to check its teeth, Qin Ruobai turned pale, her fingertips on the pen turning white.

"This Dr. Chen... is quite daring." The ecologist researcher widened his eyes, instinctively rubbing his jaw.

Besides the teeth, Chen Ying also checked the Brown Bear's limbs, including its claws.

If it scratched even a little with those sharp claws, Chen Ying would be gone for sure.

But this bear was peculiar; despite being messed around with, it didn't wake up, merely purring a bit, not caring about Chen Ying's handling.

After measuring everything he could, Chen Ying squeezed some honey into its mouth.

The creature finally opened its eyes to take a look.

Taking out the prepared fruit, he split it, smeared a layer of honey on it, stuffed it into the Brown Bear's mouth, letting it hold another half.

"Finish eating and continue sleeping, don't come frightening people, okay?"

"Hum hum hum hmm hmm," the Brown Bear let out a series of unconscious sounds, changed its posture, and lay on its back eating fruit.

Jinya was sandwiched between Little Jin and Little lynx, the three sat on the car roof watching Chen Ying handle the bear.

While watching, Jinya suddenly sighed, "This bear is so ugly, the Black and White Bear is prettier. Do you think we can see the Black and White Bear again when we go back?"

Little Jin didn't answer, shifting to a farmer squat position.

Jinya glanced at it sideways, seemingly aware of its disappointment.

"If you want to go to that mountain, you can go by yourself, I'll just take Baby back."

Jinya lay down, lowered her head, and licked her paw tips.

"I like Two-legged beasts, like Er Niu, I don't like places without them."

Little Jin's breath seemed to pause for a moment, and after a long time, it jumped off the car and ran out.

Little lynx didn't dare make a sound, feeling that if it made any noise, it would get beaten terribly.

However, it had already decided that wherever mom is, it will be there too; although it can't take care of Aunt Er Niu like the brothers and sisters at Aunt Er Niu's, it can accompany mom and make her happy.

What was that phrase the Two-legged beasts have? Something like "we just focus on companionship"?