On Shan Erlie, there was a patch of wild grapevines. The snow had bent the vines over a fallen log, forming a small, natural shelter.
A Black Bear was hiding here. It had been shot in the right shoulder—the very one Hu Guangmin had hit the morning before last.
With its shoulder injured, it didn't dare put weight on one of its paws as it walked.
So, although the bear had been out of its den for two days, it hadn't gone far.
It was gritting its teeth against the cold, huddled under the grapevines, when it heard a bark. A black dog squeezed through a gap in the vines and lunged, sinking its teeth into the Black Bear.
The Black Bear swiped back with a paw. The black dog tried to dodge, but it was surrounded by vines. As it turned to escape, it slammed right into them.
The black dog quickly ducked to scramble out, but not before the Black Bear's claws caught its rump.
